From the Principal

Jarrod Bainbridge undertook the Acting Principal position at Mentone Park Primary School for six months.  Jarrod will return to PPS on Monday 29th July.

Emergency Drills

On Friday we practiced our lockdown drill. This drill involved an alarm sounding and all children remaining in their classrooms as part of the lockdown procedure.  We practice several drills throughout the year including on site, off-site (Gerry Green oval), lockdown procedures and review our emergency management plan. Following the drills, all staff evaluate the effectiveness of the drill and make any relevant suggestions for future drills.

Reports and Parent Teacher interviews

Reports will be available via Compass on Friday 21st June and parent teacher interviews will take place via Webex on Monday 24th June. Interview times can be booked via Compass and will open on Monday 17th June.  

Monday 24th June is a pupil free day.  TheirCare will run a pupil free day program, if families need to access this, please book directly through TheirCare by Wednesday 19th June. 

Division Cross Country

Congratulations to the students who competed in the Southern Metropolitan Region Cross Country on Wednesday. Oscar VK, Eden B and Jordan B have progressed to the State finals. 

Aerobics

Congratulations to our Aerobics teams who competed at the State finals a few weeks ago.  Rockin’ Robics placed 2nd and Starburst placed 3rd.  Both teams will compete at the Nationals in August. 

Prep/Foundation Enrolments 2025

Enrolments for 2025 are now open for foundation/prep students. To our current families with a child/children commencing Prep in 2025, please ensure you fill out the enrolment form and return to the office by the due date, 26th July.  If you know of any friends wanting to enrol their child for Prep 2025, please share this information with them.

Annual report 2023

PPS Annual Report was endorsed by school council in Term 1 and now has been quality assured by the department and is available to view on our website. The 2023 school year was an extremely busy and successful year. It is only when you reflect on the year that you truly appreciate what the school achieves in one year. I would like to thank our staff for their ongoing professionalism and commitment to the teaching, learning and wellbeing environment they provide for the students at PPS. 

Learning Achievement

PPS has continued to ensure our focus on academic progress for all children and is proud of its strong teaching and learning culture. Our Professional learning communities (PLC’s) ensure a cohesive team approach through collaborative planning and assessment procedures and ensure consistent teaching and learning across each year level.   We employed support staff and teachers via the tutor learning initiative and Tier 2 funding to support children to consolidate their learning.

Dedicated Learning Specialists in Numeracy, Literacy and PLC have facilitated improvement across the school. 

Our timetabled maths sessions and shared maths planning have led to positive results across the school. We have also begun introducing Bar modelling across the school and upskilling staff in this area. In reading we are implementing knowledge rich curriculum units using fiction and non-fiction novels.  In writing each year level has implemented WAGOLLs (what a good one looks like) and linking inquiry units to our writing genres. 

In 2023 English Teacher Judgements, 98% of our students from Foundation – Grade 6 were assessed at, or above age expected standards.

In Mathematics Teacher Judgements, 99.4% of our students from Foundation – Grade 6 were assessed at, or above age expected standards.

Our NAPLAN results are strong across Reading and Numeracy.   

Year 3 Reading percentage of students in ‘strong or exceeding’ – 90.7%. 

Year 5 Reading percentage of students in ‘strong or exceeding’ – 95.5%  

Year 3 Numeracy percentage of students in ‘strong or exceeding’ – 87.5%.  

Year 5 Numeracy percentage of students in ‘strong or exceeding’ – 93.6%. 

Both measures were above similar schools and state averages

Wellbeing 

As a school we continued to provide a safe and happy environment for the students.  Wellbeing lessons were taught as part of our learning programs and students also attended weekly specialist sessions with a designated teacher with a focus on wellbeing. In 2023 the wellbeing committee undertook an audit of wellbeing programs to access the mental health funding in preparation for 2024.  Staff have undertaken various professional development activities focused on wellbeing and engagement. 

In 2023, the ATOSS measures overall reported a positive endorsement from our Grade 4-6 cohort.  Sense of connectedness 79.2%. Management of bullying 77%.

Both measures were slightly above similar schools and state averages. 

Engagement

Parkdale Primary School provides a positive environment for teaching and learning, allowing students to feel valued and connected within the school setting. Effective teaching, inclusive curriculum and respectful relationships between staff and students is promoted through the school. 

PPS provides a depth of extra-curricular activities and leadership opportunities for the students. Student voice is encouraged through SRC, leadership, student learning goals and student forums. We ran many whole school events with the students, such as assemblies, camps, excursions, sporting activities, GATEWAYS, AMC, and a whole school concert. Students participate in 5 specialist sessions each week giving them the opportunity to experience various curriculum areas. 

Our school has maintained a strong focus on regular attendance. In 2023, the average number of absence days per child was 16.7%. This figure was below the state average. All year levels had attendance of 90% and above. This measurement is a positive endorsement of our strong connection with students and families.

Overall parent satisfaction was a positive endorsement of 94.8%, this was above state average.

School staff results indicate a positive endorsement for school climate 90.6%, this was above state average.

Thank you to the school council members and the parent community for their contribution to our school in various coordination and volunteer roles; PPA, parent rep, Mother’s & Father’s Day, garden club, special lunch days, camps, excursions, classroom assistance, and the numerous people who volunteer for events that come up throughout the year. 

End of Term 2

The end of term is on Friday 28th June.  We will hold an assembly at 2:00pm with an early dismissal of 2:30pm.  Children will be dismissed from their classrooms.

Rail works Update – Parkers Road Crossing Closed Friday 14th June – Sunday 16th June

Kind regards

Leanne Bradney