Dear Parents and Carers,

We have been busily Learning, Creating and Inspiring as part of our Inquiry investigations in 'I am an Eco-Warrior'. Our Year 2s have been learning about Indigenous Australians and how they care for and live off the land, gaining insights on how we can use sustainable practices to protect the environment. Furthermore, our Year 4 and 6 students were inspired by conservation efforts and practices at Healesville Sanctuary and Werribee Zoo, in caring for and protecting endangered species. We are proud of all of our students participating in a range of events, demonstrating curiosity and our school values.

Division Swimming

On Wednesday 5th of March, Advay, Jacqueline, Jasmyne, Melody, Jonas, Andrew, Aliesha, Jemma and Grace represented Burwood East Primary School at Division Swimming. The students competed in a range of events, including freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, breaststroke and relays. Our students performed amazingly, achieving their best and displaying support and camaraderie with all participants. Congratulations and “Just Keep Swimming!”

Smile Squad

The Smile Squad team from healthAbility are coming to our school in the first four weeks of Term 2. Smile Squad is the Victorian Government free school dental program. This means ALL students can get a free dental check-up, preventive services, and treatment at school.

Information regarding accessing Smile Squad services will be shared soon via Compass. To support this initiative, the Smile Squad free school dental program has provided free oral health packs that students will bring home. These packs contain a toothbrush, full sized toothpaste, and an oral health brochure. Please take the time to read the brochure. It’s full of helpful hints and tips to help your whole family eat well, drink well and clean well – for life.

GRIP Leadership Conference

Our Year 6 student leaders have enjoyed their opportunity to enhance their leadership development with their attendance at the GRIP Leadership Conference on Tuesday. GRIP Leadership stands for the four core values of the team and the conference: Generosity, Responsibility, Integrity, and People.

The GRIP Student Leadership Conference is unique in that it concentrates specifically on training student leaders for their role as School Leaders. The presentation, topics, and content of this conference all focus on what the students can do and be as leaders. They explored the responsibilities of a student leader, leadership through friendship and new ideas to help others.

National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN)

The National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a literacy and numeracy assessment that students sit in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 each year. It is the only national assessment that all Australian students have the opportunity to undertake. The NAPLAN test window is 9 days, beginning Wednesday, 12th March to Monday, 24th March. During this time, our Year 3 and 5 students will complete tests in Writing, Reading, Numeracy, Language Conventions and Spelling.

Information for families with students in these year levels can found here.

You can support your child in preparing for NAPLAN by reassuring them that the tests are just one part of their education, and by encouraging them to try their best on the day.

A NAPLAN individual student report will be provided by your child’s school later in the year.

Breakfast Club

Over the last few weeks it has been great to see so many students enjoy the return of our Breakfast Club (every Friday 8:20 – 8:40am). It is pleasing that so many students are joining the BEPS community for a healthy breakfast before they start their day. A big thank you to April, our parents and staff who volunteer to support this each week.

Parent Association

This year we are actively looking for members to join our Parents Association. The BEPS Parents Association is a volunteer group within Burwood East Primary School who help to further enhance the sense of community at the school through social events, fundraising for school improvement initiatives, and creating a link between the school and the families of the students. Past events that were organised by the Parents Association included Mother’s Day and Father’s Day stalls, lunch meal deals (i.e. Sushi lunch), the Colour Run and Bunnings BBQ.

The Burwood East Primary School Parents’ Association requires a minimum number of office bearers, a President, Secretary and Treasurer. These roles are not onerous and can be shared. Unfortunately, if we are unable to appoint parents/carers in these roles, we will not be able to have a functioning Parents Association. Below is some information regarding the membership process.

Membership shall be open to any parent or guardian of a child attending the school or any other interested individual of the immediate school community and must have a valid WWCC (please refer to the next page on how to apply).
All members must sign and complete the Registration Form, valid for 1 year.
The annual Registration Form shall be submitted to the Burwood East Primary School Parents’ Association Secretary on or before the Annual General Meeting of the Burwood East Primary School Parents’ Association or at any General Meeting of the Burwood East Primary School Parents’ Association.
Upon submitting a signed and completed Registration Form, a person becomes a Registered Member.

We will be hosting a Parents Association meeting on Monday 17th of March at 3pm in the staffroom. Everyone is welcome to attend. If you have any questions or would like to know more about these roles, please contact Teri on 9802-8618 or via email.

Take care,

Teri and Edwina

CSEF

Camp Sport and Excursion Fund