Principal Report

Welcome back to NLPS for 2024! 

As always, the new year brings new changes, including a change in your child’s class and teacher, a new leadership mix and new buildings (on the way!). I hope that all our families and students had a chance to truly relax and recharge over the summer holiday break and the children are all ready and raring to go for another big year of new learning, new friendships and new experiences. I know our wonderful and dedicated staff are.

If you are beginning your time as part of the NLPS community with a new Foundation student, or if you are a parent of a child that is about to commence their final year in primary school, and for all of you that have students in between, it’s wonderful that you can be a part of our fantastic school community and I hope you are all looking forward to an amazing school year. The school is happy to work with you to support your child/ren to ensure that this is the case.

A big greeting to our new and returning members of the teaching staff this year. 

These new staff members include Sophie Loveland (Foundation), Marissa Kearney (Year 1), Chris Brown (Year 2), Kate Puhar (Year 5/6), and Josh Butler (Year 5/6). Additionally, Lisa Richards and Lyndal Carrington both are returning from maternity leave on a part time basis, and Jackson Castiglione also returns for two days.

In a time when there is a shortage of teachers in our education system, we are extremely pleased and proud to attract and welcome a significant number of professional and quality new teachers and education support staff to our school in 2024, it is a testament to the great reputation the school deservedly has.

Building Update

Despite the best laid plans, the permit for our new Mod-10 (double storey) portable has not yet been approved and so, unfortunately, no works were able to begin over the summer holiday break. The new plan is for building works to commence late February, beginning with the demolition of the existing, old and tired single story portable located closest to the gym.

Rest assured that when things are greenlighted to begin, the school is ready to go, with three of our five Year 5/6 classrooms already in alternative locations and a revised yard duty timetable to allow for the impact of the reduced yard space. 

Smooth Start  

Despite the makeshift classrooms mentioned above, all grades had a smooth start to the school year and the students have quickly been acquainted with their new teacher and class friends. The specialist programs of Physical Education, Art, LOTE (Auslan), and Music have all begun their weekly timetabled lessons. With the impact of the coming works affecting the Library and Drama spaces, an alternative program has been created – more about that below.

For these sessions parents are reminded that children will require; runners (school shoes are not suitable for running and when participating in active programs), a water bottle and if possible, shorts /or tracksuit for P.E and a library bag to protect borrowed books (a green/blue recycle bag from the supermarket is great for this task) for Library. The school has purchased a number of class sets of waterproof art smocks to protect children’s clothes during the Art lessons. 

The Resilience Project

We are very happy to announce that our school is partnering with the very well regarded ‘The Resilience Project’ in 2024, aka TRP. The Resilience Project provides practical, evidence-based mental health strategies to build resilience and happiness. Through school curriculum and TRP Wellbeing Journals, we share the benefits of Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness (GEM), and easy ways to practise these in everyday life. It also incorporates emotional literacy, connection and physical health education and activities as they are foundational contributors to positive mental health.

Students will work through TRP lessons during their allotted time with Sharon Rogers (Library) or Michelle Sullivan (Drama) as part of a revised specialist program during the building works. Students will still be able to borrow from the library during set lunch times starting in the next few weeks.

Sun Protection – Term 1 

Newport Lakes Primary School is a ‘SunSmart School’ and has a Sun Protection Policy that all students are to wear an approved sunhat (bucket or legionnaire style) until the end of April. Students are to bring along their hats to school every day during that time and a ‘no hat ~ no play’ rule will apply. Parents are reminded to clearly label their child’s hat and to continuously check that the label remains legible. It is also recommended that all students have their own water bottle with them every day at school. This bottle will be accessible to the children during class and must only contain water. Please do not fill with juice, cordial, etc. Parents are requested to apply sunscreen before school and sunscreen will also be available in each classroom for children to apply if required throughout the day.

If the hot weather becomes extreme (e.g. above 34˚C and a strong northerly wind) there may be the need to restrict or reduce the outside play times during recess or lunch.  Although many of the children are very disappointed about missing their outdoor play periods, it is necessary that we restrict the amount of exercise and exposure to the heat on these days. In these situations, students will be supervised indoors where they participate in passive play such as board games and craft activities. 

Communication at School

Communication between school and home is very important in every child’s education. There are multiple means of staying in touch with your child’s teacher and being informed of what is happening at school. Some of these include: 

Newsletter – Every second Thursday the school newsletter is published via iNewsletter. The newsletter will contain information about activities that have been happening and are being planned for the future, as well as features pertaining to the curriculum and wellbeing and important parent information.  At the conclusion of each newsletter there is a school calendar that contains dates of all events and activities throughout the year including holidays and pupil free days. Please ensure that you register your email details by subscribing here or on the school website.

Reminders Notices – Reminder notices will be sent out regularly via the Compass Portal to all families of any school updates and in the lead up to events & activities. A list of dates to remember can always be found in the iNewsletter as well as on the Compass Calendar.

School Website – The school website (www.newportlakesps.vic.edu.au) has a wealth of information about the school and what’s happening. There is a school calendar that contains dates of all events and activities throughout the year including holidays and pupil free days. Key dates and events are also displayed on the calendar on Compass as well.

Twitter – The school has its own twitter account and will often send out special notices and updates on what’s happening in your school. 

Contacting your Child’s Teacher – If you have any concerns or would like to discuss a matter in regard to your child it is very important that you arrange to meet with your child’s teacher. This can be done in a number of ways including; 

• arranging a meeting at a time suitable for both parties. This can be done by sending a note to the teacher, emailing the school (place teachers name in subject box) or leaving a message and contact details at the school office for the class teacher to contact you
• emailing the teacher directly via Compass
• dropping in to the classroom before school (between 8.50-9.00am) note that this is only suitable for brief messages

Meet the Teacher Interviews - Meet the Teacher Interviews will be conducted for all year levels on Wednesday 6th March between 2:00-7:30pm. Interviews will be available as a face-to-face meeting or online. Bookings for all classroom and specialist teachers will be conducted online via the Compass Parent Portal. Further information on the upcoming parent-teacher meetings will be sent out via Compass.

Student Reports – All children will be assessed on the Victorian Curriculum. This incorporates English, Mathematics, the Humanities, Health and Science. Student reports will be available on Compass prior to the mid-year parent interviews and at the end of the year. For more information on the Victorian Curriculum, please click here. 

Parent Helpers - Parents are also often required to assist on excursions and classroom activities where an extra set of hands and eyes is of invaluable assistance. Please discuss with your child’s teacher if there are ways you can assist in the classroom. 

All parents / carers etc. will require a current Working with Children Card to assist in any activity at the school, including volunteering to help out for school-based events such as breakfasts and fetes. We advise parents to apply for a WWCC to avoid the disappointment of missing out on being able to attend or assist with your child’s learning at school. Once you have yours organised, feel free to come into the office so we can take a copy and keep it on file for any required occasion.

Parent Information Sessions – In Week 4 of this term we will be conducting Information sessions in the evenings for all year levels. These sessions will give an overview of the curriculum, special events and activities, homework etc. All teachers in the grade level will be in attendance.  

The dates for each of the Information Session are; 

• Monday 19th February - Foundation 
• Tuesday 20th February – Year 1 & Year 2
• Wednesday 21st February – Year 3 & Year 4
• Thursday 22nd February - Year 5/ 6 

Although still to be finalised, we are considering conducting the information sessions online with a follow up after school ‘open classroom session’ later in Week 7 of Term 1, where parents can visit the classrooms with their child to view and discuss the wonderful and engaging learning that is occurring in the classrooms.

Further details on the 2024 Parent Information Sessions will be sent home via Compass and in the next newsletter.

Anaphylaxis 

I would also like to remind our school community that we have a number of children at Newport Lakes that suffer from the life-threatening condition anaphylaxis. These children suffer from severe allergies to nuts and nut products (especially peanuts and peanut butter), eggs, cow’s milk, fish and shellfish. We ask all our parents to assist in making our school a safe environment for these children by not including any of these products in your children’s snacks or lunches. 

If there is a child suffering from Anaphylaxis in your child’s class you will receive a letter notifying you of this and how you can assist in making the classroom a safe environment for all children. 

School Ground Supervision 

Parents are reminded that playground supervision (teacher on duty) is provided before school at 8.45am and after school until 3.30pm.  Students should not be in the school grounds before or after these times unless supervised by their parents or an adult. Students should aim to be at school between 8.45 and 8.55am. This allows them to see their friends, chat or play a short game before school begins at 9.00am.   Students playing in the school ground or on playground equipment after school MUST be supervised by their parents or guardians. 

The school gates near the big tree and near the stage will be locked at 3.30pm when the teacher on duty has completed their yard supervision. Any children and parents remaining in the yard after this time will need to exit via the school gate near the office. 

School Council  - Are you Interested? 

School councils are made up of parents, staff, community members and the principal. To be a school councillor, you must have an interest in the school and be able to work cooperatively with others to shape the school's future. If you are a parent, guardian or staff member, you must nominate yourself to be a school councillor and then be elected through a vote (if required). A term on the School Council is for two years. Newport Lakes Primary School Council has 8 parent representatives, with 4 placements becoming available every two years. You may wish to be on the School Council or possibly be a co-opted member on one of the sub-committees.

Please see more information below regarding the Notice of Election and the timetable/nomination procedures, or contact the front office if you have any questions. 

I look forward to seeing you again over the next few weeks – be it at drop off or pick up, the Parent Information Sessions or the Open Classroom Afternoon. May you all have a wonderful fortnight! 

Carly Bannon

Acting Principal

School Council 

School Council elections will take place from 9 February 2024 and is always welcoming of new members so please don’t hesitate to put yourself forward if you are interested.

Newport Lakes Primary School Council consists of: 8 elected parent positions, 3 elected DET positions, 1 Community member.

• We have five (5) parent and one (1) DET vacancies to be filled.

If you decide to stand for election, you can arrange for another school parent to nominate you or you can nominate yourself. Nomination forms are available from the office.

Once the nomination form is completed, return it to the office within the time stated on the notice of election which is stated below.

If there are more nominations received than there are vacancies on council, a ballot will be conducted in the two weeks after the call for nominations has closed.

2024 Election Timetable

What is a school council and what does it do?

All government schools in Victoria have a school council. They are legally formed bodies that are given powers to set the key directions of a school within centrally provided guidelines. In doing this, a school council is able to directly influence the quality of education that the school provides for its students.

Who is on the school council? 

There are three possible categories of membership:

• A mandated elected Parent category. More than one third of the total members must be from this category. Department of Education and Training (DET) employees can be Parent members at their child’s school as long as they are not employed at the school.
• A mandated elected DET employee category. Members of this category may make up no more than one third of the total membership of school council. The principal of the school is automatically one of these members.

An optional Community member category. Its members are appointed by a decision of the council because of their special skills, interests or experiences. DET employees are not eligible to be Community members.

The term of office for all members is two years. Half the members must retire each year, creating vacancies for the annual school council elections.

Why is Parent membership so important?

Parents on school councils provide important viewpoints and have valuable skills that can help shape the direction of the school.

Those parents who become active on a school council find their involvement satisfying in itself and may also find that their children feel a greater sense of belonging.

How can you become involved?

The most obvious way is to vote in the elections, which are held in Term 1 each year. However, ballots are only held if more people nominate as candidates than there are positions vacant.

In view of this, you might seriously consider standing for election as a member of the school council or encouraging another person to stand for election.

Do I need special experience to be on school council?

No. What you do need is an interest in your child’s school and the desire to work in partnership with others to help shape the school’s future.

What do you need to do to stand for election?

The principal will issue a notice and call for nominations following the commencement of Term 1 each year. All school council elections must be completed by the end of March. 

If you decide to stand for election, you can arrange for someone to nominate you as a candidate or you can nominate yourself in the Parent category.

DET employees whose child is enrolled in a school in which they are not employed are eligible to nominate as parents for the school council where their child is enrolled 

Once the nomination form is completed, return it to the principal within the time stated on the notice of election. You will receive a Nomination Form Receipt in the mail following the receipt of your completed nomination.

If there are more nominations received than there are vacancies on council, a ballot will be conducted during the two weeks after the call for nominations has closed.

Remember

Ask at the school for help if you would like to stand for election and are not sure what to do.

Consider standing for election to council this year.

Be sure to vote in the elections.

Please don’t hesitate to contact Carly Bannon on 9391 8942 for further information.

SCHEDULE 4: NOTICE OF ELECTION AND CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

An election is to be conducted for members of the school council of

NEWPORT LAKES PRIMARY SCHOOL

Nomination forms may be obtained from the school and must be lodged by 4.00 pm on Thursday 8 February 2024. Nomination forms are available form the front office.

If a ballot is required, ballot papers will be distributed on Friday, 9 February.  

The ballot will close at 4:00pm on Monday 15 February 2024.

Following the closing of nominations a list of the nominations received will be posted at the school.  The terms of office, membership categories and number of positions in each membership category open for election are as follows:

If the number of nominations is less than the number of vacancies, a notice to that effect and calling for further nominations will be posted in a prominent position at the school.

Nomination Forms are available from the front office.