Principal's Page

Reminders About School Processes

As the term continues, we would appreciate families supporting a few important school processes to help ensure a calm and successful start to each day for all students.

LATE ARRIVALS

We have noticed an increasing number of students arriving after the start of the school day. While arriving a few minutes late may not seem significant, even arriving at 9:05 a.m. can mean students miss important settling-in time, daily routines, key messages, and learning instructions. Arriving late can also be unsettling for children as they enter the classroom after learning has already commenced.

Our school expectation is that all students are at school and ready to begin learning at 9:00 a.m. — not arriving at the school gates at 9:00 a.m. and reaching the classroom several minutes later. Students generally enter classrooms at approximately 8:57 a.m. to prepare for the day ahead.

We ask families to please ensure children arrive at school with enough time to be organised and settled ready for a prompt 9:00 a.m. start.

A reminder also that any child arriving after 9:00 a.m. MUST be brought into the school office and signed in by an adult before heading to class. The child will be issued a late pass which they will give to their teacher. 

Parents ARE NOT permitted to take any late-arriving children to their class as this is disruptive to the class once learning time has begun. Additionally, all parents within the school after 9am are required to be signed in themselves as a visitor via Compass (and show Working with Children Check) and require prior permission.

SCHOOL OPENING TIME

We would also like to remind families that school gates open at 8:45 a.m., when teacher yard duty supervision begins.

We have noticed some students arriving as early as 8:30 a.m. This is too early, as children are not supervised prior to 8:45 a.m. Unsurprisingly, some of our early arrivals can become a little silly or make unsafe choices while waiting, and there are no staff on duty at that time to assist or supervise.

To help ensure student safety and a positive start to the day, we ask families not to drop children at school before 8:45 a.m. unless they are attending a supervised program.

COLLECTING YOUR CHILD DURING THE SCHOOL DAY

We would also like to offer a helpful reminder for families needing to collect children during the school day for appointments or other reasons.

Where possible, we encourage families to avoid organising pick-ups during recess or lunch play times. Children who are outside playing and having fun with friends often do not hear announcements straight away, which can sometimes mean it takes longer for them to arrive at the office. We know this can occasionally add stress for families who are trying to get to appointments on time.

For your own convenience, it is often much smoother to arrange collections outside of recess and lunch breaks where possible.

Thank you for your support and cooperation with these important routines.