Dear Parents and Caregivers,

This is our last newsletter for this year. I cannot believe we are about to farewell the 2024 school year, because it only feels like a moment ago, we were welcoming the new year.

Our transition day on Tuesday 11th, was a wonderful success. Our 2025 prep children settled seamlessly into their new grades and our current P-5 children met new teachers and new classmates. Our grade 6s had a day exploring their secondary schools.

We were absolutely thrilled to host our Minister of Education, Ben Carroll on Wednesday. Minister Carroll toured the school and sat in on phonics instruction in the prep and grade one classes. The school captains were wonderful school ambassadors, showing the Minister around the school. We are all so incredibly proud of our school!

The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority has released updated individual school performance and information data through the My School portal. NAPLAN results were released last week and now available on the My School portal. TRPS has achieved good results. We work hard to ensure we are using evidence-based practices at the school, invest in coaching for staff and offer weekly professional learning for all staff to continue to grow their knowledge and skills, which in turn positively impacts student outcomes.

This year we introduced MiniLit as our main literacy intervention program and next year we will be implementing InitaLit. InitiaLit is an evidence-based whole-class literacy program providing all children with the essential core knowledge and strong foundations to become successful readers and writers. InitiaLit is a three-year program, covering the first three years of school (Foundation to Year 2). We will also be introducing The Explicit Mathematics Program (EMP) for all children in Foundation to Year 2. EMP is a high quality, rigorous, and research informed mathematics program designed to improve Numeracy results and provide a strong foundation to build increasingly sophisticated numeracy knowledge and skills which will enable children to demonstrate success in NAPLAN at year three and five. All programs and teaching practices at TRPS are aligned to the Science of Learning research.

We must aways remember we are part of a bigger public education system and recent changes to education in Victorian has made me very excited to be an educator all over again. I have said to staff it feels like we are in a renaissance and next year will be so exciting for our school and state education in general

I am delighted to share with the community some exciting results achieved by Victorian students.

The results of 2 recent international assessments show Victorian students achieving some of their best-ever results in mathematics and science and recognise that Victorian schools are also effectively supporting the development of creative thinking skills of Victorian teenagers.

Victorian schools are enabling students to develop and acquire both the fundamental skills of literacy and numeracy and the important capabilities such as critical and creative thinking.

TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) is an international study held every 4 years. The 2023 results show Victoria’s Grade 4 students are among the best performers in the world in science, with Victorian students achieving their best-ever result.

Victorian students in Grade 4 also reversed the trend of decline in mathematics.

The OECD’s PISA creative thinking is an international test of the creative thinking of 15-year-olds. In Victoria, 89% of students met the national proficient standard, compared to 78% in the OECD.

Tomorrow we officially recognise and congratulate the grade 6 children at their graduation ceremony. To our graduating class of 2024, we wish you all the very best as you embark on the exciting journey that lies ahead. We encourage you to carry with you the values of respect, responsibility, kindness, and growth that have been instilled in you during your time here. Embrace new challenges with an open mind, treat others with respect and empathy, and never underestimate the power of your own potential!

We would like to farewell the following staff who will not be returning to our school in 2025. We thank you for all your work in supporting the children, families and staff at Tarneit Rise Primary School and we wish you all the very best for your future endeavours. Au revoir Ali Cummins, Rac’el Dixon, Alison Goh-Stuart, Lucy Coull, Elliott Tanner, Tamryn Takai, Nikita Nikita, Jess Todio, Charmaine Stoffels, Emanuela Grech, Abby McGinn, Georgina Kelly, Khanh Emmens, Hannah Piacentini, Chloe Rojo, Bernadette Clarke, Linda Venema, Fatai Veamatahau, Danni Lichoudaris and Alysha Winton.

Important dates

17/12/2024- Grade Six graduation

18/12/2024- Semester Two reports go live to families.

20/12/2024 - Last day of Term Four. Students finish school at 1:30pm.

29/10, 30/01, 31/01, 03/02, & 04/02/2025- Prep assessments

29/10, 30/01, 31/01/2025 Grade One assessments

29/01/2025- First day of Term One for Grades Two to Six

03/02/2025 - First day of Term One for Grade One children

06/02/2025 - First day of Term One for Prep

Please remember Prep children do not attend school on Wednesdays in February

Last day of school for 2024

Friday 20th of December is the last day of school for this year.

Please ensure your children arrive at school on time as the whole school assembly will start punctually at 9 am. The reception office will be locked and unattended during this time.

Students will be dismissed at 1.30pm. Please ensure you pick up your child/ren from school at 1.30pm. Big Childcare will be operating from 1:30pm.

Please book them in by contacting them on 0421 156 450

Have a safe and relaxing break and we will see you in 2025

Nadia, Sarah, Missy, Stephen, Lauren, Adam, Gemma & Alana

The Fortnight Ahead