Principal's Message

Principal's Message

Welcome to Week 9 of Term 1. The term concludes at 2:30pm on Thursday with an Easter Hat Parade at assembly. All parents are welcome to come along and join in the fun. We will draw our annual Easter Raffle during this assembly and also admire the wonderful work the students have done with their hats. Please keep things simple on the hat front - we don't want to cause any stress in the home with elaborate presentations. For those wishing to attend the assembly, feel free to roll up at about 1:30pm to the gym.

Whilst on the Easter topic, I want to thank all families who either donated to the raffle (prizes) and/or bought raffle tickets. This is a wonderful effort (again) by you all and is very supportive of the community spirit we wish to engender. All monies raised go towards enhancing the school for the kids - so thanks! You can hand in your money and raffle tickets to our helpers who will be at the front gate each morning next week. The raffle will be drawn at the final assembly.

As I write this piece, I can hear the buzzing sound of the Australian Grand Prix. I live in an apartment on the perimeter of Albert Park Lake and it certainly is tough to ignore. I am not a GP fan, but I do love the sense of excitement it raises amongst the community. I reflect on our values of Character, Community and Learning and realise how important it is to live by a code of values. Community is at the centre of what we do at SMPS and I am grateful for the support we receive to create our little village on the edge of the metropolis. 

I want to thank all parents for their support of the Ride2School Day on Friday along with the Prep families for getting behind the Teddy Bears' Picnic. Whenever we involve the children, our families are truly magnificent. You can see why our children are so kind, hardworking and well-adjusted. The families are so loving and supportive and we do not take that for granted. 

I want to recognise Holi which is celebrated on March 24 and 25. We have many of our lovely families who celebrate this significant event and we pay respect to their spirit and energy. Holi is a popular and significant Hindu festival celebrated as the Festival of Colours, Love, and Spring. It recognises the triumph of good over evil and the changing of the seasons from winter to spring. Happy Holi to you all!

Just a quick one...the way you presented your child for school photos was lovely. Our uniform is very smart and it was on full display this week during the photo shoot. Well done to you all. 

James Baldwin, the American writer and activist, said, "Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed that is not faced."  I interpret his meaning to be that you don't always get what you want despite your best efforts, but you need to show spirit to be a positive agent in the world. I think he also meant that, despite any setbacks, we need to continue the struggle and not spend too much time stuck in self-pity or lament. Life is too short, and moving on with optimism is part of developing a strong character. Life is not fair - but don't expect it to be. Just keep trying your best each day.

I have included some information below which is pertinent to upcoming events. Please read through these carefully so you remain up to date. Thank you for being a kind and generous spirit in the world. It needs all it can get.

Key Dates and Events

• Tuesday, March 26: Photo Catch Up Day
• Thursday, March 28: End of Term 1 Easter Assembly - School Finishes at 2:30pm. Book into OSHClub if you cannot pick your child up by 2:30pm please.
• Monday, April 15: First Day back in Term 2 (8:45am)

Changes to Swimming Lessons this Year

• After reviewing our process and costs for swimming over the last few years, with the support of our School Council, we have decided to change our approach
• We will now only arrange swimming lessons for Year 3-6 students.
  (This may change from year to year depending on funding available)
• Schools get $235 per Year 6 enrolment to support families with swimming lessons. This is a standard, statewide formula
• After calculating student numbers, this amount of funding would enable students in Year 3-6 to go for free in 2024
  (We are lucky to be a few tram stops away from MSAC so our travel costs are zero) 
• If we wanted all students to attend like previously, this ends up costing families approximately $60 per student. We wanted to be considerate of cost of living expenses and we balanced this with the return of having all students in the school attend swimming each year which is a huge logistical undertaking for families and the school
• We encourage all families to pursue swimming lessons outside of school for those wanting their child to reach high levels of proficiency

Additional Reasons:

• This will reduce time taken from school for our younger years who are still early in their education at a pivotal time
• This will significantly reduce the amount of volunteers needed to attend, as our younger students often need a lot of support with changing etc.
• Our younger students get extremely tired after a day of travelling back and forth, swimming and lessons at school. Our older students are generally able to cope better with this. 
• We will still be able to provide a few years of swimming lessons, when students reach the older year levels.
• It will significantly reduce the amount of logistics and organisation from a school perspective as well.

Policy Feedback Welcomed

• Our policies are located on Compass for our families.
• We welcome any feedback on these policies. 
• If you have any feedback, please send through to South.Melbourne.PS@education.vic.gov.au 
• Policies are always dynamic documents so we are happy to periodically review them if needs change