From the Principal

House Captains and Vice Captains will receive their badges at Monday Morning Assembly on the 2nd of February.

Welcome to IPS 

I am confident that 2026 will be a fabulous year for our students, families and staff.

This edition of Inside Ivanhoe has a lot of dates in it so please note the ones that are relevant to you in your diaries. Shortly you will receive a letter from your child's class teacher with additional information regarding online "Parent Information Evenings" and in person "Meet the Teacher" events. (Grades 1 to 6 only)

I encourage you to look at each page of this newsletter to see what the students have been up to, who our staff are, where you can help, what events are coming up, Student Leadership, important information from the Education Department,  School Council, community programs, special news, and of course Our Stars of the Week. 

Welcome to IPS Picnic-6th February. 5.30pm - 8pm

Each year, our PFA (Parents & Friends Association) puts on a Welcome Picnic in the first few weeks of the school term to welcome both new and returning families to Ivanhoe Primary School. We hope to see you next Friday night. 

It can be quite sunny on the oval so you are welcome to bring your own shade umbrella or gazebo.

Please feel free to bring a picnic, rug, drinks, chairs etc but do please take your rubbish home so it's not still there for the following Monday's school day. The birds love making a mess of our grounds.

The IPS school canteen will be open for snacks and some food items..

OASIS

The "Oasis" was completed over the school holiday by Paul Moreland of morlandscapes. Paul is father of Ged who graduated from Year 6 in 2025 and was a school council member, active in our Facilities committee. 

The idea for the "Oasis" came from discussions at Junior School Council (the students) and was paid for by profits from last year's School Fair.  

Other things on order are more outdoor seating for the senior students, an outdoor table tennis table and an outdoor chess set near the hall. 

Conversation starters

Talking about school with you child shows you’re interested in their day and their learning.

Pick a good time to start a conversation about school. When you can provide your full attention. 

Simple, positive and specific questions about parts of the day can get your child talking. It’s good to use questions that invite more than a ‘yes’, ‘no’ or ‘OK’ response. For example:

• What’s the news from school today?
• What was enjoyable and, or fun?
• What did you like best at school today?
• What does your classroom look like at the moment?
• What did you do in class after recess?
• Who did you play or work with today?
• What topics are you working on in the classroom?

Remember:

• Make time to talk. This can often be when you’re doing something with your child. For example, your child might like to talk when you’re walking the dog or preparing dinner together.
• Give your child your full attention if they want to talk with you about their day.
• Take seriously whatever your child tells you. For example, you can say things like, ‘That’s really interesting. Then what happened?’ or ‘And how do you feel about that?’
• Use active listening techniques. These can help you pick up on your child’s feelings and work out whether they want to talk.

Your interest boosts your child’s mental health, happiness and wellbeing. It can also have a very positive effect on your child’s behaviour and achievement. It shows your child that you value school and education, which encourages them to value it too.

Talking together about school also helps you get to know more about what’s expected of your child at school, how they learn and how they handle challenges. It can help you understand when your child is feeling less interested in school or having problems.

When you’re in touch with your child’s feelings about school, you’re more likely to see problems before they get too big. This way you can work on overcoming challenges together.

Talking about school issues – like school projects or friendship problems – is also a great chance for you to express your family values about things like teamwork, respect for self and others, friendships, relationships, problem-solving and so on.

I borrowed these strategies from https://raisingchildren.net.au/ . Don't let a small issue become a big one. Your child's teacher will happily speak with you and work with you to overcome any issues. We all want the best for every child and will do all we can to get every student off to the best possible start.

Drop off

In the mornings at drop off please refrain from waiting until your child goes into the classroom. I am aware that it is only Week One, but almost all the children with the exception of Foundation are capable of being left  to line up when the music begins and the bell sounds.  Mrs Wright, Mr King and I are supervising before school from 8.45am to 9am and after school from 3.30pm until 3.45pm.

Large groups of adults staying to wave children into class can be unsettling and intimidating to small children. It is lovely to see parents chatting with each other. However, please consider moving well away from the line up area and leaving before the bell to go to class. This allows the children a period of  independence and agency and makes the transition from outside play to inside learning time infinitely easier for the teacher.

Anxiety

Despite all best intentions and encouragement, a few children may find coming to school causes some initial anxiety. Your child’s behaviour and communication style might appear to change overnight when they start school. Suddenly everything is ‘awesome’, or they’re rolling their eyes at everything you say. Your child is learning all kinds of new things from their friends and peers and this is part of developing a unique identity.

If you find your child is experiencing difficulties, while not brushing their feelings aside,   you should accentuate the positive. Phrase questions and commentary in ways that encourage a positive response, as this practice is good for changing negative mindsets. 

Celebrations and sharing food

For reasons specific to food allergies and safety, as well as the significant financial impost brought to bear, families are respectfully requested that under NO circumstances are you to supply birthday cakes, cupcakes, sweets, gifts and toys etc on school grounds – including at the OSHC program. The teachers have lots of strategies to acknowledge these special days.

I apologise in advance if this seems harsh, but the wellbeing of every student must be our primary concern.  Consider celebrating birthdays and other events at a local park or in your own home. 

Many of our students are anaphylactic and food allergens pose a very real threat.

Traffic Safety - The Kiss & Go zone

Traffic is a big issue for our school particularly at drop off and pick up.

The widened area of Ailsa Grove at the bottom of the hill is for turning your cars in. It is not a parking spot. Please be patient and wait your turn to use the circle and resist the temptation to use neighbouring driveways. Please leave yourself enough time so you don’t have to rush.

Reversing has an inherent risk and increases the chance of an accident occurring. 

The Kiss & Go zone is a short term stopping area where drivers are allowed to stop and park the vehicle for a short time – no longer than two minutes – while the student exits or enters the vehicle from the kerbside doors. 

 The zone operates during peak periods allowing parents to park their vehicles for up to two minutes outside the school gates.  The driver should not leave their vehicle.

Did you know?

This area is not a parking space and fines and demerit points apply if the driver leaves the vehicle unattended longer than 2 minutes. Bylaws officers frequently patrol during these times.

Avoid leaving engines running as there are lungs at work. 

The "Kiss 'n' Go" drop off zones aids traffic movement.

SunSmart - BRING YOUR HAT TO SCHOOL

We are a registered SunSmart school and children must wear wide brimmed hats in Term One and Term Four.  Children without hats will be directed to the shade cloth areas at the top of the school near the Waterdale Rd building. Hats are required for Physical Education classes and Sport.  

(Click this sunsmart link)

Star of the Week

Star of the Week awards will begin Monday 9th of February for Year 1 to Year 6 after the first complete week of school.  Foundation Stars of the Week will begin later in February, once they have settled into their school routine and understand the concepts behind the values.

Thank you for your help over the holidays

We are justifiably proud of school and regular maintenance is required to keep the school clean, safe and a nice place to come to. Thank you to the West Ivanhoe Football Club for maintaining our magnificent oval. There is a Working Bee on the 28th of February so please put it in your diary. Children appreciate and develop a greater sense of pride and ownership of their school when adults muck in and contribute to its beautifaction and safety.

2026 Term 1 Working Bee 28th February 3pm-5pm

Please come along to our next Working Bee. Prior to the date a job sheet will be put up online and you will be able to see what needs to be done and where you can sign on. Children who help can earn house points and we often put on a sausage sizzle.

2026 Diary Dates for the fridge

2026 Term Dates

Term 1: January 27th January (Year 1- 6 students start 29th January and Foundation students begin 5th February) – 2nd April (2:30pm finish)

Term 2: 20th April – 26th June (2:30pm finish)

Term 3: 13th July - 18th September (2:30pm finish)

Term 4: 5th October - 18th December (1:30pm finish)

2026 Welcome Picnic - 6th February (5.30pm - 8pm on the oval)

Year Level Information Evenings (online) Week beginning 9th of February

Meet the Teacher (in person 10 minute timeslots) Wednesday the 18th of February

School Photos Friday 21st of May

Education Week Monday 18th to Friday 22nd of May

Education Week Open Morning Wednesday 20th of May - 9.30am to 11.30am.

2025  Camps Program dates

Year 4 - Alexandra Adventure – 14 October – 16th October 2026

Year 5 - Sovereign Hill - 14th September – 16th September 2026

Year 6 - Canberra Tour – 5th October – 9th October 2026

2026  Curriculum Days

Tuesday 27th January - Curriculum Day (teachers and staff only)

Wednesday 28th January - Curriculum Day (teachers and staff only)

Friday 5th June - Curriculum Day (teachers and staff only)

Wednesday 5th August - Curriculum Day (teachers and staff only) Parent Teacher conferences are on this day.

Monday 2nd of November - Curriculum Day / PPD (teachers and staff only) 

2026 Working Bee dates

2026 School Council Meeting dates

* 6.30 pm correspondence tabled for 7pm meeting start.

2026  Public Holidays

Monday 9th March - Labour Day

Friday 25th April - ANZAC Day

Monday 8th June - Kings Birthday

Friday before - AFL Grand Final - Date to be confirmed

Tuesday 3rd - November Melbourne Cup

PFA Events & Community Building Opportunities

Please regularly refer to the PFA page in future editions of "Inside Ivanhoe". 

Some dates are yet to be confirmed. We would love you to join the Parents & Friends Association (PFA). If you are interested please let the school office know, or speak directly to Ms Kelly (1K) or myself. Last year we met at school in the staffroom on a Tuesday  evening at 7pm and online. A schedule of meetings is yet to be developed.

Below are some "Save the dates" for this year's events. 

Welcome Picnic Friday 6th February  

Mother's Day stall Wednesday 6th May TBC

Mother's Day Breakfast Thursday 7th May TBC

Disco Friday 24th July TBC

Trivia Saturday May TBC

Father's Day stall Wednesday 2nd September TBC

Father's Day Breakfast Thursday 3rd September TBC

End of Year Picnic Friday 11th December TBC

Please consider joining School Council 

The notice of election is in this newsletter on the "Join IPS School Council" page which is  dedicated to providing information and nomination materials. There is a fact sheet link on that page. If you require further information please feel free to call me on 9499 1880.

Nomination forms can be downloaded from the Join School Council Page of this news letter or from reception. Please get your nomination in by 4pm on Friday 6th of February.

Be Proud Of YOUR School

Remember our school values are: Respect, Persistence, Independence, Resilience and Confidence. 

Talk about these and model them for your child. It will help bring these concepts to life and make them more meaningful.

It is incumbent on all of us to bring these values to life and present them in ways that make sense to children. Here are some examples.

Persistence - Not giving up when things become challenging.

Persistence is not giving up, having more than one go at something, trying again when you get something wrong or just practicing to do your best.

Resilience - Being able to recover quickly from setbacks.

Resilient people often feel good about themselves. There is a difference between people who bounce back easily and those who get frustrated. If you can learn to bounce back you’ll do better at everything in life.

Confidence - Believing in yourself and what you can achieve.

Self-confidence is the belief in yourself and in your abilities. That you can do it. When you experience success, you feel good inside and you want to do better.

Independence – Being able to achieve things on your own.

Our aim is to ensure that every student is able to develop into an adult capable of looking after themselves, to thrive on the challenges that life throws at us, to experiment sensibly with risks and develop your own ways of doing things successfully.

Respect - Showing consideration for others.

Respect is thinking and acting in a way that shows others you care about their feelings and their well-being.

Rest assured that behaviours that disrupt learning and teaching will not be tolerated.

Finally - Behaviour support

We are fortunate at IPS that we do not have many behavioural issues at school so we are able to focus on the work of teaching and learning. However, from time to time we do need to follow our processes to minimise issues when they do arise.

We listen and make reasonable adjustments where we can. At the same time, our school is designed to work well for all children together. Predictability, shared expectations and consistent responses help every child feel safe and learn best. 

Stretching resources to meet every individual preference would weaken the trust and fairness that benefit every student. Our staff capacity and sustainability are important considerations, so we endeavour to be clear about what we can reasonably deliver. 

Please join us in keeping conversations cooperative and focused on building relational trust so we can continue to do the best for every child.

Please refer to the Behaviour Support page of this edition of  Inside Ivanhoe. Should you have any question please direct them to your child's teacher or the member of the Principal class.

Mark Kent

Principal

http://www.ivanhoeps.vic.edu.au/ 

We respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Victoria and pay respect to the ongoing living cultures of First Peoples.