Principal's Report

Principal Report 

REMINDER- MONDAY 4TH NOVEMBER- CURRICULUM DAY- STUDENT FREE

TUESDAY 5TH NOVEMBER- MELBOURNE CUP PUBLIC HOLIDAY- NO SCHOOL

Fun Fiesta- Just 3 weeks away!

We are so excited about all the activities, stalls, food and rides that will be happening at our Fun Fiesta on 22nd November! Tickets for discount rides are now available on Compass to pre-purchase, and donations for all of the activities are still pouring in. We are so grateful for the support of our school community for this event. In particular, we appreciate all the parent/carer volunteers who have already signed up to help. We still need quite a few more helpers, so if you have not signed up yet- please put your name down at the office!

Parent Contributions and Booklists 2025

Tomorrow, Friday 1st November, we will inform the school community of the Parent Payments for 2025. The Department of Education has asked schools to itemise the payments. The cost for Parent Payments was discussed and approved at our Finance and School Council n 23rd October 2024.

As per previous years, books and stationary will be available to purchase (and be delivered to school ready for next year) through Ross Office Supplies. Information regarding the process for purchase of stationary and resources will be included in the information sent home to each individual student tomorrow. Students entering Foundation in 2025 can collect their Parent Payments information at the next transition session on Thursday 7th November.

Prior to the closure of online books/stationary sales on 11th December 2025, classroom teachers will send home any excess resources from this year, with individual students. Parents can then determine if there are any items not required to be purchased for 2025 classes, prior to finalising the online purchasing process. Some items (such as book boxes) are retained at the school and passed up to next years teachers. Again, current classroom teachers will inform parents of any items that will remain at the school for 2025. 

 Swimming Term 4

All students from Foundation to Year 6 are strongly encouraged to take part in the school swimming program, which will commence on 9th December this year. Information sheets to be returned to school were provided to families recently. These need to be completed to assist with the planning of our whole school swimming program. 

The school swimming program provides the curriculum instruction required as part of the Department of Education swimming program expectations, as well as a wonderful social and personal development opportunity for all students. We urge all students to attend, regardless of any participation in a current program external to the school program. By the end of Year 6, it is anticipated that students should be able to demonstrate the knowledge and skills identified in the Victorian Water Safety Certificate.

Swimming and water safety is included in the Health and Physical Education curriculum from Foundation to Level 10. This requires schools to ensure that they are implementing a swimming and water safety program that meets the requirements of the curriculum. You can read more about Swimming in schools here: https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/swimming-instruction-and-water-safety-education/policy

Attendance and family holidays

The importance of daily attendance at school is well documented and regulary promoted at Albany Rise Primary School. Please remember that it is the parent/carers responsibility to notify the school if your child is going to be late or away from school. 

You can log your child’s absence by logging onto our schools Compass platform, or call the office on 9547 1146 if you need help with Compass. 

As a school, whilst our attendance data in 2024 has improved on previous years, we still have a large number of absences for reasons other than illness or medical appointments. A staggering total of 609.5 days has been accumulated already this year at Albany Rise in student absences due to family holidays. Where possible, I strongly recommend families consider taking holidays during the school holidays scheduled regularly for this purpose throughout the school year.

The Department of Education is following the progress of our schools’ approach to reducing student absences in 2024 and beyond very closely. We sincerely appreciate the efforts of all families who ensure students are at school, on time every day. In particular, the reduction of the number of students with 20 or more days absent (equating to 1 day per fortnight across the year), is a key focus area.

Going to school every day is the single most important part of your child’s education. Students learn new things at school every day – missing school puts them behind.

School Uniform

The Student Dress Code (Uniform Policy) aims to:

• foster a sense of community and belonging and encourages students to develop pride in their appearance 
• support Albany Rise Primary School’s commitment to ensuring that our students feel equal and are dressed safely and appropriately for school activities 
• reduce student competition on the basis of clothing 
• enhance the profile and identity of the school and its students within the wider community

Parents ensuring their children come to school in the correct school uniform supports our staff in addressing these expectations and promoting pride and consistency across our school.

Parents/carers who are experiencing difficulty with the costs of uniform, can access free and 2nd hand uniform through the office and State School relief. Contact the office for assistance if needed in this case.

The School Uniform shop is open at the school every Tuesday afternoon near the office.

Cultural Celebrations

At ARPS, we have opportunities to learn about, respect and celebrate a range of cultural events each year. Earlier this year, we acknowledged the Chinese New Year, Greek Easter, and had a multicultural day which acknowledged a range of traditions with a focus on Aboriginal culture. 

This week, some other cultural occasions are occurring including:

Diwali, also called Deepavali, is the Hindu festival of lights, with variations celebrated in other Indian religions such as Jainism and Sikhism. It symbolises the spiritual "victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance”. 

Halloween, or Hallowe'en is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows' Day. Halloween had its origins in the festival of Samhain among the Celts of ancient Britain and Ireland. 

Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a remembrance Poppy is a memorial day observed in Australia since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces members who have died in the line of duty. In Australia (like many countries), Remembrance day occurs every year on 11th November. Our School will hold a short Remembrance presentation at school during Assembly on Friday 8th November, with 1 minutes silence occurring also on Monday 11th November at 11am.

For any families involved in a special occasion or cultural celebration this week or next week, we wish you all the best. I encourage families to share their special cultural events within our community. It is great that we have such a broad range of cultural experiences to share within our school. It is also pleasing to note that, according to the Year 4-6 student Attitudes to School Survey this year, in 2024 the number of students who agree that our school respects diversity, is the highest it has been in the past 5 years.

Gumbuya World Animal Excursion

What a fantastic time our Foundation to Year 2 students had at Gumbuya World on Wednesday this week. All of their learning about habitats, life cycles, species and different foods this term has certainly been highlighted through this experience!

I do hope everyone enjoys the 'extra long' 4 day weekend, including the curriculum day on Monday 4th November. From Wednesday 6th November to Friday 15th November, I will be away from school on Long Service Leave. I am grateful for the support and hard work of Mr Michael Mottershead, who will be the Acting Principal during this time. 

Judith Drew

Principal