Principals' Message 

Hello parents and friends,

The first two weeks of Term 4 have been very busy but very exciting for the TPPS community.  Here is a snapshot of some of the successful events that have taken place:

• Grade 3 Camp to Camp Oasis.  A huge thank you to Kirsty Reilly, Mark Cookson, Jessica Wallace and the teachers who attended the camp.
• Grade 1 Movie Night. 
• District Basketball Round-Robin (The boys team won and the girls were runners up).
• Hoop Time Basketball Regional Finals (The Future Stars team won and will move to the next round). 
• The Grade 6 Maths Games Team competed in the Maths Association of Victoria (MAV) Maths Games Day at Genazzano FCJ College and beat over forty Independent and Government schools to be named champions.  Please click into the ‘Learning @ TPPS’ section for more information. 
• Attending the MAV Maths Talent Quest (MTQ) awards ceremony at RMIT University and receiving two extremely prestigious awards. Once again, click into the  ‘Learning @ TPPS’ section of this newsletter for more information. 

Our Grade 4 students are off to Anglesea next week to spend three days at Camp Wilkin and our Grade 2s are on camp to Latrobe Sports Centre.  The weather forecast looks magnificent and our students are all looking forward to their time away! 

We have such a fantastic school with so many diverse opportunities for our students.  We are so proud of the achievements of our students and we are looking forward to a very successful Term 4.  

Term 4 Overviews  

Term 4 Curriculum overviews for all year levels have been forwarded to parents via Compass last Friday. Within these overviews you will find what your child is learning in all curriculum areas, the Positive Education focus for the term, homework requirements, Specialist days and teacher contact details. 

All term overviews are permanently kept in the Community Section of Compass (choose School Documentation from the dropdown menu then School Community Information then the year level folder that you wish to access).

Social Media Safety 

Parents and carers play an important role in supporting their children to be safe online

and on social media. You can help your children safely navigate their digital world and educate them to avoid harmful online experiences. You can explore websites, games, apps and social media together and set some rules and boundaries. 

Your support and guidance can give your children the knowledge to make sound decisions online and confidence to ask for help when they need it. It is also important to stay informed about online safety.  

The Department of Education recognises this important issue and has developed fact sheets about supports to help keep students safe online and what to do if they are involved in an online incident. 

The fact sheets contain links to evidence-based information on supporting positive and safe online experiences, signs to watch for that a child or young person might need support, what to do if something unsafe happens online, and where to reach out to for more support.  

To access the fact sheets, refer to the Safe Socials webpage. The fact sheets are available in 19 community languages.   

The government is also launching public consultation on age limits for social media. 

Safe Socials – For Parents 

The Victorian Government has developed a website to support families with primary school aged children that may be starting to access social media.  Please click here to access the ‘Safe Socials’ website. 

Parent/ Caregiver/ Guardian Opinion Survey Results

We would like to thank the parents that completed the annual Parent/ Caregiver/ Guardian Opinion Survey. We had a 14% completion rate, so we note this as we interpret the feedback at the school level. 

The majority of the categories garnered upwards of 75% positive response.  This included over 90% of respondents positively responding to the following categories:

• My child feels safe at school
• The school treats my child with respect
• The school has a consistent approach to promoting positive student behaviour
• I am able to get the information I need through the school’s regular communication channels 

We note that some parents suggested that they were not receiving enough communication from their child’s classroom teacher. We are happy to discuss this in person, should any parent wish to do so. This is an area we have put a lot of work into over the last couple of years.   Above the two required formal reports TPPS offers the following:

• Two scheduled formal/parent teacher interviews 
• An additional Term 1 progress report
• Term Overview published at the commencement of each term outlining the curriculum that will be covered, specialist days, teacher contact information, etc. 
• The offer to parents/ carers to arrange meetings at any time during the year 
• Regular phone calls and meetings organised by teachers with parents
• An Open Morning and Night in Term 2 to see inside the classroom and have a general conversation with classroom and specialist teachers 

In addition to this, Individual Education Plans (IEPs) for required students will be published next week.  Please see information about this in the article below. 

If we are missing the mark with this, please feel free to let us know either via email, phone or in person.  We are continually striving to improve our learning programs and supports for parents/ carers. 

Individual Education Plans 

In line with Department of Education guidelines, Templestowe Park Primary School will be implementing Individual Education Plans (IEPs) for selected students. IEPs assist students who require a range of supports with their education.

An IEP is a written statement that describes the adjustments, goals and strategies to meet a student’s individual educational needs so they can reach their full potential. An IEP is essential as it helps you plan and monitor a student’s unique learning needs.

An IEP:

• outlines clear educational goals for the student
• encourages student voice to allow the student to engage and take part in their own learning
• is strengths-based with a focus on the student’s potential to achieve positive educational outcomes
• is age appropriate
• includes short-term goals that will lead to the achievement of long-term goals
• communicates individual and shared responsibilities, including how parents and carers can support their child at home
• is reviewed once per term
• acknowledges and celebrates the achievement of student progress.

Selected students will have IEPs implemented for Term 4. These will be shared electronically with parents next week. If you require further information about your child’s IEP, please contact their class teacher to arrange a discussion.

Student Free Day – Monday 4th November Cup Eve 

Monday 4th of November will be a student free day as all staff will be undertaking assessment and reporting duties. As part of the 2022 Victorian Government Schools Agreement, teachers must be provided with a student free day for student reporting purposes.  

TeamKids will provide a full day service for any family needing supervision. To contact and make bookings for TeamKids please click on the link below. 

 https://www.templestoweparkps.vic.edu.au/page/33/Out-of-School-Hours-Care 

Are you Leaving Templestowe Park in 2025?

We ask that you let us know if you are considering moving or have enrolled at another school in 2025.  We require this information as soon as possible in order to establish grade structures for the start of the new school year.

If your child is currently in Grades Prep to 5 and will not be at Templestowe Park in 2025, please notify the school office by emailing to:-  templestowe.park.ps@education.vic.gov.au

2025 Grade Prep Transition 

Our 2025 Prep Orientation sessions are set to commence on Thursday, 31st October and we are all very excited to welcome our newest students. The future Preps will participate in four different transition sessions with the teachers.  These sessions will allow the children and their parents to familiarise themselves with our school and to begin forming some friendships before next year. 

The Orientation sessions are as follows: 

• Thursday, 31 October: 2.00 – 3.00pm
• Thursday, 7 November: 2.00 – 3.00pm
• Thursday, 14 November: 2.00 – 3.00pm
• Thursday, 28 November: 9.15 – 10.30am (final Prep orientation session)

SCHOOL HATS IN TERM 4

All students are required to wear school hats from the commencement of Term 4. If you need

to buy a new one, please visit the PSW retail store or order online. We are a SunSmart school and we have a ‘no hat no play’ policy. 

Old School Uniform Sale – 75% off! 

All remaining uniform stock at our onsite store is now 75% off.  This is a great saving for our community and we encourage all parents to take the opportunity to stock up on our old uniform.  Both the old and new uniform can be worn until the 2026 school year. 

Please click here to access the School Uniform page on our school website. 

Mark Roberts                       Brian Cleary                                        Robyn Twyford 

PRINCIPAL                           ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL                  ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL