From the Principal

Spirito di comunità

Well done to our Year 5/6 students for their leadership in hosting our first assembly of the year! Grazie mille to all the parents, carers, grandparents and younger siblings who were able to come along and share in the occasion. 

It was such a pleasure to celebrate the dedication and care of our crossing guards, Sue, Kerry and Roz, at our first whole school assembly last week. They have generously served our community for many years, 35 years in Sue’s case, greeting generations of BSPS students each day with warmth and a friendly smile. They are wonderful role models for the community-minded young people we are committed to nurturing at our school, and we are grateful to have them. As a token of our appreciation, we have installed a park bench right beside the crossing with lovely plaques in their name.

Meet the Teachers and Welcome Picnic 3pm Friday 13th Feb

BSPS parents and carers are warmly invited to join us at 3.00pm on Friday 13th February to meet our teaching teams and hear an overview of what Semester 1 will look like at each year level.

Following the presentations, stay on for our annual Welcome Picnic; a relaxed opportunity to come together as a community, reconnect with friends, and welcome new families.

Families are welcome to bring a picnic and blanket, or enjoy the BBQ and drinks (including adult beverages) available for purchase on the day. All funds raised will go towards a facelift for the area along the northern synthetic court/ Brunswick Rd fenceline. 

A presto, ci vediamo lì!  We look forward to seeing you there.

Please note: students will be dismissed at 3.30pm as usual and under parent/ carer supervision.

Building project update

Stage 1 of our building project is now complete, and Stage 2 is about to kick off. This will involve extensive roof repairs to our Heritage buildings, upgrading the drainage outside the Junior Building, replacement of the synthetic turf on the northern court, extensive internal repainting, and window upgrades. A site shed will soon be installed on our Rathdowne St side, and some sections of the yard at that end of the school will be out of action for brief periods during the works. The work is due for completion before the start of Term 2.

Our wonderful Environment Sub-committee are reimagining the area between the northern court and the Brunswick Rd fenceline, and have some fun nature play ideas for that space once the drainage work is completed. Student suggestions will be included in the final design. We look forward to seeing that area beautified and reactivated once the dust has settled. Stay tuned.

Supporting your child in their learning

You may recall from previous newsletters that the School Improvement Team have done a deep-dive into our Parent/Carer Opinion Survey responses. Overall, the data is really strong and shows a high degree of trust and satisfaction in our school - grazie mille! An area that was a little lower is in Teacher Communication. Following our supplementary survey, we know that families are really happy with the responsiveness of teachers to phone calls or emails, and with the conversations that are had at pick up/ drop off. The two areas flagged for improvement were: i) How I can support my child in their learning and ii) More feedback about my child’s inter/ intra-personal development. 

Thanks so much to those who participated in both surveys for your very specific and practical feedback! This term, you’ll notice a change in our newsletter format. Learning Area teams will take turns to include an update outlining the topics being covered in class, and how these skills can be encouraged at home. 

Another change you’ll notice is the introduction of a new feedback rubric we’re trialling, aligned with our school values. The rubric explicitly describes the mindsets and behaviours we are nurturing at BSPS, focusing on students’ inter and intra-personal skills.

It will be used with students to build their agency and ownership in developing these skills, and will also be shared with parents and carers via Compass so you can better support your child at home.

Students and staff, as well as some very helpful parents have been consulted in the design of the rubric, and students are particularly keen to complete a self-assessment before teachers provide their feedback. The rubrics will be distributed ahead of parent-teacher conferences in Terms 1 and 3. We look forward to hearing what you think of it!

Finally, we had our School Review preliminary meeting last week, and are feeling very excited and energised about the process ahead. Schools undergo a rigorous review process every 4 years, and a new Strategic Plan is developed as a result of the findings. Staff, student and parent/carer focus groups will form part of the process on March 5th. Please let me know if you’re interested in taking part by emailing the school office.

Ciao for now, Kristie