“We would like to acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people, the first people to dream, create, wonder, dance, play and learn on this breathtaking land. This land was cared for and respected for tens of thousands of years. The First Nations people lived in companionship with the animals and the life on this land. We acknowledge that this is stolen land and we pay our respects to elders, past, present and emerging.”

Rayma Atkinson (2023 Suzanne Peterson Award Recipient)

Assemblies

It was fantastic to hold our first Friday afternoon assembly last week and to welcome our new Foundies to this special tradition. These assemblies are a time where students celebrate their learning, we sing our special school song, announcements are shared and we present shining star awards to highlight students' effort in their learning and play. The Friday afternoon assemblies are typically outside, but can be moved into our multipurpose room when it is too hot or wet for students to sit on the asphalt.

We also run a short Monday morning assembly that takes place at 8.55am; we would love to see as many parents and community members present as possible. Monday morning assemblies will focus on staff and students sharing information, and should not go for longer than five minutes. The Monday morning assembly will take place on the asphalt, in class lines.

We look forward to seeing you at all or some of our assemblies!

SunSmart

Any time they are outside at school in term one, BNWPS students require a sun smart hat. Sun Smart hats should either be a hat with a broad brim that goes all the way around the hat, or a legionnaires cap that has the brim at the front, and a flap at the back to protect the neck.

Baseball caps and some bucket hats unfortunately do not fit these requirements and are not considered to be sun smart.

Broad brimmed hats are available in a variety of sizes to purchase for $15 from the front office.

Students who are not wearing a Sun Smart hat during recess and lunchtime will be asked to play in the undercover area.

Another important part of being sun smart is to make sure that students are regularly applying sunscreen. All classes at BNWPS have sunscreen that is available to students, and we have many students who bring their own tubes of sunscreen in their bags for application at school.

In addition, to be Sunsmart, we remind everyone that while students are at school, shoulders should be covered at all times, which means singlets cannot be worn outside.

The document below shares more information about what qualifies as a sunsmart hat.

Lost Property

Speaking of hats, they are one of the most common items that are lost here at school and often end up in lost property. We would like to remind all families to make sure that anything (and everything!) that students bring or wear to school should be clearly labeled with their name. At BNWPS we often finish off the term with a huge pile of lost property that we end up donating to local charity shops, or that just ends up in landfill. Every week, our Lost Property team goes through the pile of hats, shoes, lunchboxes and items of clothing, and tries to locate the owner of each item. This is only possible if the items are clearly labeled with the name of the student who bought the item to school. Let’s all work together to aim for a much smaller pile of lost property by the end of term one 2024!

Safety in the Yard

When the weather is warmer, many of our students will come to school in sandals or open-toed shoes. Given the sticks in the woodlands, it can be dangerous for our students to wear these shoes if they enjoy cubby building and nature play. If your child is someone who enjoys playing in or running through the woodlands, we ask that you make sure they are wearing closed-toed shoes to prevent any stick injuries to their toes or feet.

Privacy Statement

Good privacy practices help schools to protect individuals’ personal and health information. All school staff, including contractors, service providers, and volunteers of the department and all Victorian government schools share the responsibility and obligations of protecting privacy.

The Department’s updated 2024 privacy policy is attached below.

The Nor'Wester

BNWPS is committed to Child Safe Standards and prevention of child abuse

Issue 3 · 19 Feb 2024

In this issue