Principal's Report

Term 1 Week 9

Dear families,

It is hard to believe that term one is just about done and dusted. I’m sure everyone is looking forward to some well-earned rest over the break. It is a bit of an usual break with the first Monday of term two being Easter Monday public holiday and the Friday being ANZAC Day public holiday. To add further confusion, Tuesday the 22nd of April is a whole school, student free curriculum day. Staff will be onsite undertaking their planning day on the day with students recommencing on Wednesday the 23rd of April. As always, OSHC is operating on the Tuesday for those families who require this service.

It has been great to see so many families engaging in our term one parent/teacher meet and greets. We remind families that our teachers are always available schedule a time that is mutually agreeable to meet at any stage throughout the year to discuss you child social, emotional and academic needs and progress.

I have been fortunate enough to spend some time with our Year 1 & 2 students at Bayfit over the last two weeks. I was thrilled to see our students participating in their lessons, building upon their confidence and water safety skills and representing our school well. This week our Year 3 & 4s have undertaken the swimming program and from all accounts have found this valuable.

Over the last two weeks, Years 3 and 5 students undertook the National Assessments Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests. It was encouraging to see such calm, confidence from our students as they demonstrated their learning from the last 12 months with ease. These results will be available later in the year and, will be triangulated with other data, to form a clear idea of your child’s academic progress. I would like to thank Ms Moodley and Mr Brown for coordinating the tests as well as the pre and post work involved in for this administration.

I am disappointed to have received a complaint today from a neighbour that some of our students were throwing rocks and sticks at their house across the rear laneway. Unfortunately, this is not the first complaint of this nature that I have had from various neighbours over the past 12 months and obviously, the neighbour has found this very distressing. For the remainder of this term, we will ensure that the gardens around the perimeter of the green field are out of bounds for anything other than ball sports being played on the field. Our students will be permitted to engage in digging and construction activities outside of the STEM room where they are safe from flying balls as well as the temptation to send rocks and/or sticks over the fence.

On Friday, we are looking forward to and are very proud to support Natalie G from 6B as she participates in The World’s Greatest Shave to raise money for the Leukaemia Foundation. This is a bold and compassionate choice, and we are excited to stand by her as she makes a difference for people affected by cancer. In the lead-up to the event, we are taking the opportunity to have meaningful discussions with our students about kindness, respect, and inclusion. We want to ensure that all students understand the importance of supporting others, celebrating acts of generosity, and showing empathy towards people who may look different from them. At 2:45pm, we will host a special assembly where Natalie’s hairdresser will be onsite to shave her head. After school, we will host a community BBQ for everyone to enjoy. The BBQ will be a gold coin donation with all proceeds going toward Natalie’s fundraising page. To support Natalie's bravery, and this incredible cause, there will be a special whole school assembly at 2.45pm on Friday the 28th of March. At 3.30pm, there will also be a BBQ outside the gym. All families are encouraged to join the BBQ by purchasing a sausage or two, with all proceeds going towards this great cause. 

To support Natalie, we ask students to bring a gold coin donation on Friday, 28th March. In addition, families can access Natalie’s fundraiser via this link: https://www.worldsgreatestshave.com/fundraisers/nataliegray

A reminder also that Friday is whole school photo day for all individual and class photos. Please ensure your children are in full school uniform. We have timetabled the day so that Year 3 and 4 students going swimming will take their photos before heading off to BayFit. 

On Friday 4th April there will be an Easter Bonnet parade that will take place at 9.30am with a coffee van onsite. 

Next Friday (4th April) is the last day of term, with assembly beginning at 2.00pm with a 2:30pm finish. The World's Greatest Shave Raffle will also be drawn at assembly.  We look forward to seeing you there and wish you a safe and relaxing break before Easter and the start of Term 2.

Have a lovely weekend and last week of term 1.

Richard Buckingham

Principal

Fire Drill Practice

As part of our Department requirements, each term we must practice a drill. 

On Monday 31st March a Fire Drill will take place between 10.30am - 10.45am.