Principals Report

On behalf of the staff and myself, I would like to wish you all a safe and relaxing holiday after a short and jam packed term. This term has been just under 9 weeks and we have been busy with camps, excursions, Harmony day and lots of learning so we are all ready for the Easter break and school holidays.  Please ensure that you are keeping up to date on Compass, Compass calendar and checking the newsletter for key dates as these are our main channels of communication.

I hope you enjoy these Harmony day messages from our grade 2's

Term 2 dates

Term 2 begins on Monday 15 April. Term 2 is eleven weeks long and the finish date is Friday June 28 at 2.30pm. 

We have two curriculum days planned for next  term- Friday 26 of April. The first will be focused on the Science of Learning and the second day- Monday 20 May will be a report writing day for teachers. These are pupil free days and Their Care will available for bookings from 15 April for these student free days.

Semester reports will be sent home at the end of  term 2

Grade 4 Camp

In case you missed it, the grade 4 teachers and students had an amazing time away at camp Arrabri last week. It was the largest group to go to camp and the first one for our students. Thank you to the ten staff who made the camp such a success especially the grade 4 teachers for organising everything and the teachers from other grades who took time out from their own class to support the camping program. 

SSV representative - Emmett Courtney

Congratulations to Emmett Courtney on his selection in the School Sports Victorian (SSV) Hockey team- 12 years and under. The tournament will be played in Cairns in August and Emmett will be busy training with other students from across Victoria until that time. Best of luck to Emmett and the family as you work towards the big event.

Parent teacher interviews-  22 and 23 April

The parent teacher interviews will be held in the second week of term 2. 

Monday 22 April- Grade 3-6

Tuesday 23 April - Grade F-2

The interviews will be online via Webex and will start from 1pm- 6.45pm.  The students will attend school as usual, and  classes will be covered by the specialist teachers and CRTs for the afternoon to facilitate time for the teachers to be released. Each interview is for 10 minutes with a one minute changeover so we ask that you plan your meetings carefully and attend promptly to ensure that everyone keeps to time.

The Compass Conferences portal will be open  from Thursday 28 March. These interviews are planned to give parents and carers the opportunity to talk with their child’s teacher about the transition to a new year and term one progress.  

Wales Street Social

Thank you to the Wales Street Social group for the very successful movie night that was held on Saturday March 23. There was a bumper crowd, and the weather was perfect for the outdoor cinema experience. The movie night was our first major social and fundraising event of the year and the first of many community events for the year. 

I would like to thank the people who volunteered to help organise this much loved event.

Their Care

Their Care provided a webinar earlier this week to outline their program and take questions from parents and carers regarding the implementation of the new program. I have attached the parent information booklet again for future reference. Bookings can be made via the website. Please find the 'How to enrol' button here.

SAC- end of an era

We celebrated the end of our SAC era with an afternoon tea for Vanessa,  Poppy and Cangie.  School Council president, Kellie Marks presented the staff with flowers and many thanks from the Wales Street Community. This is the last week for  the SAC program before the new provider Their Care take over next term. We wish Vanessa, Poppy and Cangie all the best for the future.

Finally....

As this is my final newsletter, I would like to thank everyone for the kind words and many  messages of congratulations I have received over the past few weeks. It is with mixed emotions that I leave the school- part of me is ready for new adventures and the next chapter of my life while another part will miss the busyness of schools- the children's voices and laughter and the comradery with colleagues.  

I take with me so many fulfilling and happy memories of my life in teaching but especially my last 15 years here at Wales Street.  This is a special place to work and learn and I have enjoyed my time with all the ex  staff members throughout the years as well as the current crew. 

Robyn Owens will be the Acting Principal next term and the school council will be involved in the Principal selection process which will be conducted in term 2. 

I  would like to wish all our families the very best for the future, and I look forward to seeing the school grow and develop in the coming years.