Prep 2024

Welcome to Prep!

Welcome to the new school year in Prep! We are delighted to have you and your child as part of our school community. This year promises to be an exciting journey filled with learning, discovery, and growth.

The Prep team is committed to providing a nurturing and engaging environment that supports your child's educational journey. We look forward to partnering with you to ensure a successful and rewarding experience for your little one.

SMART Spelling

To support our whole-school SMART Spelling (Michelle Hutchison) approach, each week we will provide on Compass the Word of the Week and Sentence of the Week.

Please:

• Help your child practice and learn the letters and sounds which make up the Word of the Week.
• Encourage your child to practice writing the Word of the Week and Sentence of the Week.

Nessy

This year we will be using the online Nessy Hairy Reading platform. Hairy Reading is game-based and fun. 

Students can work through it independently because the activities are engaging and motivational. Students are automatically guided through fun, structured learning lessons in a plan designed just for them! 

The lessons progress gradually from simple to complex. They develop phonological sound (phoneme) discrimination before letters are introduced.

Clear Folder

You child has started to bring home their Clear Folder each night. The Clear Folder is a useful communication tool, allowing notes to be sent home or for notes to be sent to the teacher/school. We ask that the Clear Folders are brought to school each day and placed in the classroom tub each morning.

Home Reading

Commencing in week 3, your child will bring home their Green Reading Bag with their Reading Diary each day. This is where you will help your child keep a record of what they are reading at home. We would like the diary to stay in your child’s Green Bag with their take home book.

Your child will bring home one take home book each night and will be given the opportunity to change their book daily.

We hope that home reading becomes a fun and happy time spent with your Prep child. The class teacher will also read with your child on a regular basis. 

The Green Reading Bag needs to be brought to school every day, please encourage your child to bring this into the classroom each morning with their Clear Folder.

Mathseeds

Mathseeds combines highly structured lessons with fun motivational elements that keep children engaged and keen to learn. Your child’s teacher will set activities and tasks that can be completed at home and at school. 

Login details will be sent home in the coming weeks.

Magic 100 Words

When the Preps start to bring home their take home books, we will also be including the first set (Golden Words) of ‘Magic Words’ for your child to learn. There are several staggered levels which collectively make up the ‘Magic 100 Words’. 

‘Magic Words’ can be found on Compass -Looking for Something? >Relevant Information > Magic 100 Words. When children can read all these words the focus shifts from ‘reading’ Magic Words to being able to spell them. We would appreciate your assistance by helping your child learn the words together  each day.

Curriculum/Units of Inquiry

Throughout the year students will explore six transdisciplinary themes, through Units of Inquiry. Mathematics and English require elements of explicit teaching but may also have a focus through inquiry. Humanities, Science, Health, Technologies and Civics are studied through inquiry learning. In the process the students will be challenged to explore, research, question, predict and solve problems. Inquiry engages students actively in their own learning.

Units of Inquiry will be posted on Compass along with 'Curriculum News' updates to keep you informed.

We look forward to an exciting world of inquiry in 2024.

Specialist Programs

A timetable of your child's Specialist times will be posted on Compass, please ensure you have printed a copy and placed it in a visible area. 

Please support your child and ensure they have the appropriate items on the correct day.

Information on our 2024 Specialist Programs, including a timetable will be available on Compass soon. 

A ‘Specialist News’ update will also be provided each term via Compass.

Special Dates

Term 1

‘Meet & Greet’ opportunity - 13, 14 & 21 February (times to be advised)

Curriculum Day - Friday 8 March

School Photos - Tuesday 12 March

NAPLAN Year 3 & Year 5 - Wednesday 13 - Friday 22 March

Term 2

Parent Teacher Interviews - Tuesday 11 - Friday 14 June (Times to be advised)

Semester Report - June

Term 3

Student Led Conferences - Tuesday 13 & Wednesday 14 August 

Term 4

Pupil Free Day

Tuesday 19 November

Curriculum Day - Wednesday 20 November

Semester Report – December

Compass

We also ask that you keep informed regularly check the Compass News Feed and action requests as they are posted throughout the year.

Ongoing feedback will also be provided throughout the year via Compass Learning Tasks.

Contacting Your Teachers

We understand that you may have questions to ask of the teacher, however the mornings are set aside for planning, preparation and a daily staff meeting. If you have any questions, please pop a note into the reading/multi-purpose bag or you can send an email (marked to the attention of your child’s teacher) to: beaumaris.north.ps@education.vic.gov.au

Informal discussions may be arranged upon request at any time throughout the year to discuss specific issues however please be assured that we will contact you should we have any concerns.

Finally...

Don’t forget to check out our A-Z Parent Guide for anything else you need to know about BNPS! This (along with loads of other information!) can be accessed on our comprehensive website.

We encourage you to get involved by discussing your child’s school day, offering to assist classroom programs and attending our school events - it’s going to be a wonderful year!

Kind regards

The Prep Team

 Nicole Grant, Sam Plumridge & Tanya Gibbon

Beaumaris North Primary School is an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School authorised to teach the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) and provides the framework for implementing the requirements of the Victorian Curriculum. 

The IB Primary Years Programme is an innovative international programme of teaching and learning that focuses on the development of the whole child and fosters a positive attitude to learning. The PYP strives towards developing internationally minded students who demonstrate the attributes of the IB Learner Profile. Accordingly, at BNPS we aim to educate inquiring, knowledgeable, and caring students, who are encouraged to ask challenging questions, critically reflect, and take responsible action.