Principal and Assistant Principal's Page

Principal's Report

The cold weather has started to set in! Please ensure your child has their Huntingdale jumper or jacked each day to wear. Please remember, as per our school Dress Code Policy that any accessories like jackets, need to be in navy blue. You can view the policy here:

E6 Dress Code Policy- https://huntingdaleps.vic.edu.au/parent-information/#policies

Don’t forget you can purchase a Huntingdale scarf and beanie at PSW in Ormond!

Reminder- Pupil Free Days

A reminder we have several student free days in the upcoming weeks:

7 June- Curriculum Day- Team Kids all day care available

10 June- King’s Birthday Public Holiday

26 June- Parent Teacher Interview Day- Team Kids all day care available

Mid-Year Semester Report and Parent Teacher Interviews

Recently, an Operoo notification was sent to parents to remind them to connect to GradeXpert so they can access their child’s report. This will be a new process for most of our foundation parents and if they need help in doing this, please go and see Gill at the office. Reports will be available on the portal from 21 June. It is essential that you access your child’s report before attending parent teacher interviews.

Upcoming Reminder- Parent Teacher Interviews

On Wednesday 26 June, teachers are conducting parent teacher interviews.

F-6 English and Japanese teachers will have 10-minute interviews together.

If you have attended an IEP Meeting you may not wish to have an interview, but you can request one if you need to.

Parent teacher interviews will be done either face to face in your child’s classroom or on WebEx.

The Parent-Teacher Interview booking system will be opening soon.

We hope that your parent teacher interviews are a positive experience and help to build the partnership between home and school.

Cross Country Division Results

On 29 May 13 students embarked on Mirrabooka Reserve in Blackburn to compete in the division cross country. It was cool but good running conditions, with all students trying their personal best. Ada and April performed well in their respective races and will move to the regional event. Well done! From all reports our students represented our school well, cheering the runners on and displaying excellent behaviour and attitude.

Myuna Farm

On 22 May our Foundation students went on their first excursion to Myuna Farm! It was a wonderful day, with gorgeous weather and the students had lots of fun exploring the farm and seeing the different animals there. The staff at the farm complimented our students on their excellent behaviour. Here are some photos of the day:

Year 1 & 2 Melbourne Museum Excursion

On Friday 24th May our Year 1&2 students embarked on an excursion to the Melbourne Museum. The students were really engaged in looking at the exhibits there from dinosaurs to bugs and crystals to butterflies. I sincerely thank our many parents who attended the day, which enabled the excursion to run smoothly.

Student Voice

Over the past 12 months, the school has targeted work on improving student voice and agency in their learning. Some of the ongoing strategies we employ to enhance student voice include:

Student Voice ideas box- this is found in the office. Students have the opportunity to write their ideas and they are shared at assembly.
Year 6 Captains- Our Year 6 Captains participate in a ‘Our House Spirit’ leadership course and are responsible for arranging team building events for students in the school. This term they have organised activities during Education Week and have plans for the last week of Term 2.
Student Leadership Council- Students can share ideas with the SLC, especially fundraising and event ideas.
Lunchtime Activities- Students often have ideas for clubs and activities at lunchtime. Where possible we run those activities. Some examples are the yoga club and having the library open every day for students.

Upcoming Reminder- Parent Teacher Interviews

On Wednesday 26 June, teachers are conducting parent teacher interviews.

F-6 English and Japanese teachers will have 10-minute interviews together.

If you have attended an IEP Meeting you may not wish to have an interview, but you can request one if you need to.

Parent teacher interviews will be done either face to face in your child’s classroom or on WebEx.

The Parent-Teacher Interview booking system is open. The link and QR code for parents to book is below.

https://www.schoolinterviews.com.au/code/skqnn

We hope that you parent teacher interviews are a positive experience and help to build the partnership between home and school.

Communicating with teachers

Communication between home and school is vitally important. At Huntingdale Primary School we have a variety of platforms for teachers and parents to communicate with one another including See Saw, email, Operoo, telephone and WebEx.

When using See Saw communicate with teachers, please make sure the email is brief. If the matter is long and complex, please write to the teacher on See Saw that you would like to discuss these issues and a face to face, WebEx or telephone meeting can be arranged. This helps parents reduce the time to write communications.

Teachers have a range of meetings, yard duty and other commitments as part of their work during the day, as well as their own family commitments after work. Teachers will endeavour to reply back to communications between the hours of 8.30-5.00pm from Monday to Friday and it may take more than 24 hours to respond depending on their teaching hours. We thank you for your understanding.

Please note that on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons, teachers are required to attend a staff workshop and cannot meet with parents after school on this day.

Feedback on Parent Session with

Maria Ruberto

Last week we held 2 very successful parent sessions with Maria Ruberto. We are seeking feedback from these sessions with a view of booking another time for Maria to return. Please find the link to the feedback form:

https://forms.gle/46S9WGFr58J12w5G8

We look forward to hearing your views.

Mabo Day- 3 June

Mabo Day is marked annually on 3 June. It commemorates Mer Island man Eddie Koiki Mabo and his successful efforts to overturn the legal fiction of terra nullius, or ‘land belonging to no-one’.

Short for Mabo and others v Queensland, the Mabo case, led by Eddie Koiki Mabo, an activist for the 1967 Referendum, fought the legal concept that Australia and the Torres Strait Islands were not owned by Indigenous peoples because they did not ‘use’ the land in ways Europeans believed constituted some kind of legal possession.

Even though Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples occupied the land, spoke their own languages and had their own laws and customs before the British arrived in 1788, ‘Terra nullis’ was an attempt to give ‘legitimacy’ for the British and Australian governments to allow the dispossession of all Indigenous peoples of their land.

The Mabo case was heard over ten years, starting in the Queensland Supreme Court and progressed through to the High Court of Australia.

Following the Mabo decision, Australia’s Federal Parliament passed the Native Title Act 1993 which established a legal framework for native title claims throughout Australia by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Sadly, Eddie Mabo died 5 months before the historic decision came on 3 June 1992 that ‘native title’ did exist and it was up to the people of Mer to determine who owned the land. Together with Reverend Dave Passi, Sam Passi (deceased), James Rice (deceased), Celuia Mapo Salee (deceased) and Barbara Hocking (deceased), he was posthumously awarded the Australian Human Rights Medal in the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Awards.

In 2015, 23 years after the decision, Eddie Mabo was honoured by the Sydney Observatory in a star naming ceremony, a fitting and culturally significant moment in our nation’s history.

Residing within the Sydney Southern Star Catalogue, The Mabo star not only recognises Eddie’s dedication, but pays tribute to the importance of astronomy to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

This information was found at https://www.reconciliation.org.au/commemorating-mabo-day/

Have a great fortnight! It’s not long until the end of the term.

Ruth Biddle

Principal

Assistant Principal's Report

I really enjoy being on yard duty in the mornings to meet up with families and walk around the school to greet students. I can feel the change of seasons and it is so beautiful to see the mist around the oval in the morning.

Writing Extension Program

On Tuesday 21st May, Selected Grade 3/4 students commenced their 10 week Literacy Extension program by visiting Story Studios in Carlton. Students met their writing mentor Lachy, who stepped students through the brainstorming process for the fanfiction novels that they will be writing over the course of the program. Students learnt how to write a ‘logline’ for their novel. They also wrote and shared a scene from their proposed story. Students enjoyed the peaceful nature of the writing studio and were inspired by the ‘flying books’ and novels written by other young writers. Over the next 9 weeks, Lachy will visit Huntingdale Primary School each Tuesday to support our Grade 3/4 Literacy Extension students as they create their own fanfiction novels. Written by Miss Ewart

Letter from ex-student

It is so great to hear how our previous students are doing after graduating from our school.

Most of the ex HPS students have got “Hrrrt Point” (Bronze Award) at school. I was very excited!! Thank you so much for your kindness, support and love for teaching have touched my heart! I will always be grateful for your guidance.　From Noa.K

私たちHPS出身のサウスオークリーCollegeの７年生はみんな頑張っています。こうやって頑張れるのは先生たちのおかげです。ありがとうございました。これからも頑張ろうと思います。希空より

Student Support Reminder

One of my main roles in the school is to coordinate the student support services in the school - academic, social and behaviour services. This includes programs we offer ‘in house’ as well as external services provided by the Department of Education and other external agencies.

Generally the process happens in the following way:

A teacher may have a concern with your child and will discuss it with you or you as a parent may have concerns about your child which you discuss with the teacher.
These concerns are then usually discussed with me so a decision can be made on which service can be accessed and is the most appropriate for your child. Permission forms are then signed.
Contact is made to the service provider who will then discuss the referral with parents and/or the teacher.
A decision will be made on what sort of support the child will need. This could be an assessment, therapy, home program, referral to another agency or in school support.

This process is confidential with only the key stakeholders- myself, the classroom teacher/s and service providers.

Often parents will show concerns about other children in the school. We as a school cannot discuss the educational, academic or social circumstances of other children who are not your own or detail support services they may be accessing. This is confidential. Please be assured that all efforts are made to support students in the school as much as possible.

School Chaplain

Susan is here on Monday and Friday. She is a counsellor herself. If you have any questions about this service, please feel free to come and see me.

Morning Tea Hang Out

Every Monday from 8:30am outside of STEM room

You are welcome to come along for a cuppa and chat.

Naomi Mori-Hanazono

Assistant Principal