Week 3&4 Term 3 2025

Dear CNPS Families,

As we come to the end of Week 4 of Term 3 2025, I wanted to discuss gratitude. I am a passionate believer that as our society becomes more fast paced and somewhat complex, we need to find time to stop, reflect and be grateful for what we have. As I enter my fourth term as Principal at CNPS, I have come to understand increasingly, how special our community is. I am grateful to move around our school, connecting with students, parents/carers and colleagues, knowing how privileged I am to lead our community.

Capital Works – Building Modernisation and Upgrade

We are officially underway. Demolition works to the outer buildings (old P.E shed and storeroom) and inside the karawun building have commenced. CNPS has been working with the VSBA and architects as we begin planning for the fixtures and fittings within our renovated spaces. Student, staff and community safety continues to be at the centre of our discussions. With increased trades on-site, FIMMA constructions have confirmed to the school that they undertake thorough induction processes, including verification of working with children checks and child safe standards information being shared.

Community Survey

At School Council on Wednesday evening (13 August 2025) we reviewed the CNPS community survey results. Thank you to the 85 respondents for your valuable contributions to the survey. We will be using this important data to plan and make changes as we move towards the 2026 academic year. I look forward to outlining more about our planned changes to CNPS processes in the near future.

Community Conversation

All members of the CNPS community are invited to an open conversation about parent/carer celebrations at CNPS. As a school we value full inclusion of all members of our community. The conversation will explore how we can support all families to feel included at times of celebration. The open conversation is happening on Wednesday 3 September 2025 from 8.30am in the art room.

Curtain Square

We have made the decision that as of Week 5, students from Year 3-6 will begin to access Curtain Square during lunch break. Students will be supervised at all times (including walking to and from Curtain Square). Consent must be granted by parents/carers via the local walking excursion event on Compass for students to attend Curtain Square.

Professional Learning

CNPS teachers have been busy undertaking professional learning this year. Most recently Dr Ryan Dunn (parent at CNPS) presented to CNPS teachers, exploring the updated Victorian Teaching and Learning Model 2.0 and the important role explicit teaching plays in educating our students. A big thank you to Ryan for being so generous with his time and energy, we are incredibly grateful for your expertise. On Tuesday this week (12 August 2025) Dr Justin McNamara attended CNPS to give a presentation to our teaching team on childhood anxiety. With anxiety levels rising in the wider community and thus within CNPS, it was a good opportunity for teachers to engage in this workshop, listing and asking questions on how we can enhance our practices to support students who struggle with anxiety.

Athletics Carnival

A gentle reminder to the community that on Tuesday next week (19 August 2025) we have the annual Year 3-6 CNPS athletics carnival at Collingwood Harriers Athletics Club. I look forward to seeing members of the community in attendance on the day.

National Week of Action

The Bullying No Way: National week of action from Monday 11 to Friday 15 August 2025 is a chance for schools to continue to create safe and respectful school environments and address all forms of bullying.

This year’s theme is ‘Be bold. Be kind. Speak up’. It encourages students and school staff to speak up and foster safe spaces where everyone feels supported and respected, and all voices are heard and valued.

At CNPS we regularly have conversations about bullying prevention – at staff meetings, during classroom activities or at whole-school events such as assemblies. We do not tolerate bullying and use our school wide positive behaviours framework and respectful relationships education to underpin our approach.

Safe Behaviours at School Crossings

As kids travel to and from school it’s important for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists to be aware and take extra care during these busy times. Following the road rules at school crossings doesn’t just keep our community safe, it is also the law.

To help keep our kids safe, it’s important for drivers to:

Slow down around school crossings at a speed slow enough to stop safely, if necessary.
Stop if a hand held “Stop” sign is displayed and you must give way when school crossings flags are displayed.
Stop and wait until the school crossing is clear of all pedestrians including supervisors.
Stop if a child or adult is about to cross or is crossing, even if there is no crossing supervisor.
Never overtake a vehicle stopping or stopped at the crossing.
Never let children get in or out of your vehicle when stopped waiting at a school crossing.
Respect School Crossing Supervisors, they’re trained to support children’s safety.
Always watch out for children near schools and if you see a school crossing, use it.

At school crossings, all road users need to be alert, including pedestrians. Always look and listen for approaching traffic from each direction before crossing. Pedestrians need to be sure that drivers or riders have seen them and are stopping.

Identifying a school crossing

School crossings are operational when flags are displayed or signs with flashing lights are operating. Drivers, riders and pedestrians can look out for the following to help identify a school crossing:

School crossings are active on weekdays during Victorian school terms. Usually between 8am to 9.30am and from 2.30pm to 4pm.
Red and white posts on each side of the road with orange children’s crossing flags.
Two parallel continuous or broken lines across the road surface. Children’s crossing yellow signs and twin yellow lights flashing.
School crossing supervisor may be present, easily identified by a high visibility yellow safety vest or jacket and a hat with the word ‘Supervisor’ embroidered.
If you’re driving in a school zone, it usually means a school crossing will be nearby. In most cases, the speed limit displayed will be 40km/h or 60km/h (when the original speed limit is 80km/h or higher).

School – Home Partnership

The hallmark of a strong school-home partnership is open and respectful dialogue, that embodies the school values. Please feel free to reach out to Jane, Erin, Trish or I should you have any questions or queries.

Warm Regards

Matthew Ferguson

Principal

STEM Class