Dear Parents and Carers,

World Teachers’ Day: Next week we are celebrating World Teacher’s Day on Friday 30th October. The theme this year is “Shine a Light”. From lightbulb moments to helping someone find their way, teachers make a difference in ways big and small. This World Teachers’ Day, we’re putting that impact in the spotlight. We’d love you to share a moment when a teacher made a difference in your life and help Shine a light on the amazing work they do. We will be celebrating with something special at assembly and morning tea. Please join us at the assembly and feel free to send your child’s teacher a message via Class Dojo. I’m sure they will appreciate that. If you’re posting on social media, use #WorldTeachersDay2026 and tag @aitsl to be part of the celebrations. Find out more and see how people are celebrating at www.worldteachersday.edu.au

High Pollen Days: With Spring well and truly here, we have many high pollen days where children whose asthma is triggered by pollen need to take more precautions than normal. During Spring, we carefully monitor the weather conditions to see if it is predicted to be a High Pollen Day. Children whose asthma plans indicate they need to be inside on high pollen days are directed to the library, or gym if there is an activity happening in there. If your child starts to experience asthma for the first time it is important that you get medical advice from a doctor and then work with our first aid officers to ensure we put plans on place to manage their asthma whilst at school.

3-6 Swimming: Swimming for years 3-6 begin on Monday 26th October. Classes will be in the pool at the following times:

12.15 – 1.00: 34B, 34C, 56B & 56D
1.00 – 1.45: 34D, 34E, 56A & 56E
1.45 – 2.30: 34A, 34F, 56C

You are welcome to attend the pool to watch if you like, but please do not purchase any items from the canteen for your child.

Curriculum Day: Monday 2nd November is a scheduled curriculum day. Staff will be onsite, working together to complete a number of professional development opportunities and will spend ½ day starting to write the end of year student report. There is NO school on Monday 2nd November or Tuesday 3rd (Melbourne Cup Public Holiday).

Supervision at Park: As you may be aware, there is a park on the corner of Coburns Road and West Melton Drive, where a number of students wait for their parents afterschool. Please be aware that the school is not able to provide teacher supervision in this area. I therefore suggest that you consider an alternative location at which your child waits to be picked up. Can I also remind you that we have an After School care facility run by Extend that is safe and well supervised and children can attend at a minimal cost. Please contact the school if you would like further information about Extend. Enrolment Packs are available at the office.

We have staff on yard duty, within the school grounds, before school from 8.30 am when gates are opened and afterschool until 3.20 pm. Please ensure your child is collected promptly at 3.05 pm when they are released from their classroom, as it can be very stressful for a child to be the only one left in the playground when all other children have gone home.

I would like to remind parents that it is your responsibility to:

ensure that your child arrives to school safely and are in the care of school staff at the beginning of the school day, and
ensure that your child is collected from the school premises at the end of the school day, or that alternative arrangements have been made for your children.

Prep Enrolments for 2027: If you have a child in preschool, or one who is turning 5 before 30th April 2027, we are still accepting enrolments for Prep 2027. Please call the office for details and to book an appointment with a member of the Principal Class team. If you have family or friends with children who should start school next year, please encourage them to contact the school for a Prep Enrolment Pack and a tour. The 2027 Prep Transition Program will commence in November. If they are enrolled by then they will be invited to be part of this wonderful experience.

Prep Transition Program: The 2027 Prep Transition Program will commence next month. All families with children enrolled to start Prep in 2024 should have already received an invitation about this important activity. The dates are:

Tuesday 10th November 10:00am – 10:50am
Tuesday 17h November 10:00am – 10:50am
Tuesday 24th November 10:00am – 10:50am
Tuesday 8th December 9:30am – 10:45am. (Children will meet their teacher for 2027 on this day)

Whilst these sessions are occurring for the children, parents are encouraged to stay on-site and hear about the wonderful programs our school has to offer, as well as how to help prepare your child for their first year of school. These sessions will also have guest speakers such as the School Nursing Service, our Out of School Hours Care service – Village OSHC - and much more. We look forward to meeting you and your child during these sessions.

2027 Plans: We will be beginning the process of forming new class grouping for 2027 during Term 4. To determine how many classes we will need in the new year please let us know if your child will not be returning in 2027 for any reason so we can plan accordingly. This is important because your child might be paired with a friend and if they do not attend, their friend may find themselves without a buddy next year.

Special Requests for 2027 Class: Part of the work we do in term 4 is to form the new classes for the following year. if you have any concerns or requests about other children your child should or shouldn’t be with, please put these in writing before Friday 23rd October. Any requests received after this date CANNOT be able to be considered, due to the flow-on effect that any changes to classes already created has across the board. I will need to stick to this timeline quite tightly to ensure the process runs as smoothly and as efficiently as possible. Please note, requests for specific teachers will not be considered. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this process, please do not hesitate to contact the office to make an appointment to speak with me.

High Levels of Learning for All

Michelle Costa

Principal

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