From the Principal
Principal: Mathew Montebello
Dear Families,
Preps Commence their Willy Journey
What an exciting start to the year! On Monday, we proudly welcomed our 2025 Grade Prep students for their very first official day at Willy Primary, and what a day it was!
It was heartwarming to see the prep area filled with excitement, smiles, and a few nerves – all part of the wonderful change that comes with starting school. While the first day can be a little overwhelming, I am thrilled to say that our new Prep students quickly settled into their new routine, showing incredible resilience and curiosity. It is clear that they’re ready to dive into the adventure of learning and growing together.
We are so proud of our newest Willy Primary community members and can’t wait to watch them grow throughout the year. Also a big thank you to all the parents who attended our cheers and tears. It was a great opportunity to meet other parents, some first timers and some already experienced in school life.
Please be sure to check out the prep page of our newsletter for more details on their first day and upcoming events.
Student Leaders
At Willy Primary, we believe that student leadership is an essential part of our school community, helping to foster a sense of responsibility, empowerment, and belonging. Our student leaders play a crucial role in shaping the culture of our school, and their impact extends far beyond just the classroom.
Student leadership helps cultivate key life skills such as communication, problem-solving and teamwork. By taking on roles such as School Captains, House Leaders, or Wellbeing Leaders, our students are given the opportunity to lead by example, encourage their peers, and contribute to a positive school environment. Over the next week Lisa and I will be meeting with our Senior JSC leaders to establish what the group wants to accomplish in 2025.
Students in years Prep-4 will also have the opportunity to nominate for JSC, in which they will help plan key fundraising events for the year, while 30 students in years 5/6 have signed up to support Anna Swan as Student Inclusion & Wellbeing Leaders which is extraordinary.
We look forward to providing further details of the work these students will be involved in as we celebrate the dedication, enthusiasm, and leadership of our students as they continue to shape the culture of Willy Primary!
Annual privacy reminder for our school community
Our school collects and uses student and parent personal information for standard school functions or where permitted by law, as stated in the Schools’ Privacy Policy and the Schools’ Privacy Collection Notice.
Our Photographing, Filming and Recording Students Policy describes how we collect and use photographs, video and recordings of students.
The policy also explains when parent consent is required and how it can be provided and withdrawn.
We ask parents to also review the guidance we provide on how we use Google Workspace for Education safely at the school and what parents can do to further protect their child’s information. If after reviewing the guidance, you have any questions or concerns regarding your child using Google Workspace for Education, please contact the school. For more information about privacy, refer to: Schools’ Privacy Policy —
https://www.vic.gov.au/schools-privacy-policy?Redirect=1
https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/privacy-information-sharing/policy
This information is also available in ten community languages:
* Amharic, Arabic, Dari, Gujarati ,Mandarin, Somali, Sudanese, Turkish, Urdu, Vietnamese
House Swimming Sports
Yesterday our 5/6 students along with selected year 3/4 students participated in the annual Williamstown Primary House Swimming Sports. Although we don’t yet know which house won, the event also doubles as the trials for the school swimming team which will participate in the District Swim Carnival in 2 weeks time. The teachers involved reported how amazing our students were, displaying all the Willy Kids qualities we know and love.
The weather was amazing with the sun out and a nice cool breeze coming off the water. We can assure parents that along with reminders every 15 min, about sunscreen, hats and hydration, we also erected two extra marquees to provide additional shade.
We look forward to hearing the final results at assembly this week.
First Assembly for the year.
This Friday (06/02/25) at 2:45pm we will be holding our first assembly for 2025.
The assembly will be held outside under the shade sail, hosted by 3/4P, and we encourage all members of our school community to attend.
Meet the teacher - Wednesday 12th February (Students dismissed 12:30pm)
Compass bookings for these meetings are now open until next week Monday 10th Feb. These meetings are an opportunity for parents/families to meet their child’s teacher and to pass on any information that they feel is important.
Reminders:
School Photos - Tuesday 18th February
Tuesday 18th Feb we will be undertaking school photos. We are asking families to ensure that all students are wearing official school uniforms, which includes the official school uniform colours.
- No Grade 6 t-shirts or jumpers
- No sports t-shirts
- No alternative colour leggings/pants (Required school royal blue)
As photo day approaches, we just need to make families aware of important information regarding the use of photos taken.
All students presented to our photographers on photo day will be photographed, their images will appear in school photography packages which will be available to purchase by school families.
If you have any questions regarding the use of photos and images within photo packages, please contact the office prior to photo day.
Volunteer Registration Information
Early next week, parent volunteer information will be distributed. Outlined in the information will be what are the requirements around being a parent volunteer. In accordance with Departments volunteer and OHS policies this is an annual requirement, which has to be completed each year.
Important Notes
A range of paper notes went home over the last week,
- ICT User Agreement
- Local Excursion Note
- Photo Permission
These notes also represent changes to recent Department policy, hence why they may look different than previous years. Please complete and return all notes as soon as possible to the classroom teacher.
Mobile Phone Policy
Just a reminder to families of the Department and School’s mobile phone policy. This policy also covers smart watches, even when placed in school mode. Phones and watches are required to be handed to the teacher at the start of the day. These devices will then be safely secured away and handed back to students at the end of the school day.
Warm regards,
Mat