Templestowe Park Primary School Newsletter

Principals' Message 

Respect, Responsibility, Integrity, Pride, Optimism 

Hello Parents and Friends,

 

We have now come to the end of Term 1 and it has been an eventful and highly successful school term.  As you are all aware, the daily timetable changed from the commencement of the year. While it has a little bit of time to get used to the change, we have seen positive outcomes thus far.  Within the first three 50-minute learning sessions before lunch, we have seen engaged students greatly focussed on their learning. Moving the heavy lifting of Literacy and Numeracy learning to a block before and just after lunchtime has seen a great improvement in student concentration and time on task.  This has freed up the afternoons for Inquiry learning, specialist classes and wellbeing activities.  The move to an earlier lunchtime at 11:40am, has also seen calmer students in the playground and less time outside during the hottest period of the day.  Our new teaching methods have proven very successful and we have seen outstanding results in the classroom.  The new Spelling Mastery program was introduced for Grades 2-6 and our students are doing extremely well.  Our new homework approach on undertaking levelled Blitzmaster maths questions and daily reading has occurred, and the feedback from parents has been positive. To top this all off, we announced our new House names that will commence in Term 2.  We are so pleased and grateful for the huge amount of work that our staff and students have undertaken in Term 1.  The passion and enthusiasm for learning we see is so inspiring. I wish our staff and students a very safe and relaxing break.  With such a high focus on learning throughout the term, a good break is exactly what the doctor ordered. 

 

We wish our Christian families and everyone a Happy Easter! Have a wonderful break and we look forward to seeing you again on Wednesday 23 April. 

Happy Eid 

Over the last month, Muslim families within the TPPS community have been observing Ramadan. Our families have been fasting from dawn to sunset as they reflect spiritually.  At the end of Ramadan, Eid al-Fitr ‘festival of breaking the fast’ takes place and it is one of the two main festivals in Islam. We wish our Muslim families a very Happy Eid!

 

Eid Mubarak! May your heart be filled with joy, your home with laughter, and your life with endless blessings.

Term 1 2025 Attendance Newsletter

Our first Attendance Newsletter for 2025 was published on Compass this week.  As part of the Department of Education and Templestowe Park Primary School’s focus on improving student attendance, we will be publishing an Attendance Newsletter each term. It is our goal to reduce absenteeism and increase regular attendance at school. 

 

Please click here to read the Term 1 2025 Attendance Newsletter.  

Term 1 Progress Reports 

As part of our yearly cycle of providing formal information to parents regarding their children, all families will receive a Term 1 Progress Report for their child today (final day of Term 1). 

 

Term One Progress Reports are simple, easy to read reports that provide feedback to parents regarding their child’s behaviour, punctuality and effort shown in Literacy and Numeracy during Term 1.  They will clearly give the reader an understanding of how students have settled in and the effort they have shown.  While there are some similarities to the semester reports that are provided in June and December, they are very different largely due to the information they are delivering. The table below helps explain the similarities and differences. 

 

 Term 1 Progress Reports 

June Reports 

  • Accessed / downloaded via Compass 
  • Available final week of Term 1 
  • Focuses on behaviour and work habits 
  • Too early to show academic progress from previous December report 
  • Provides an ‘at a glance’ overview 
  • Provides visual information only 
  • Provides feedback from the classroom teacher 
  • Accessed / downloaded via Compass 
  • Available second last week Term 2 
  • Focuses on behaviour and work habits 
  • Shows academic progress from previous December report in all subjects 
  • Provides in depth information 
  • Provides visual and written information 
  • Provides feedback from the classroom and specialist teachers 

The Term 1 Progress Reports are a result of parent and teacher feedback indicating that during the Meet the Teacher discussions (held in the first month of the school year) there is not a whole lot of time for the teacher to talk about how students have settled into the new school year as the purpose of the discussions is more about getting to know students and families a lot better. 

 

If you would ever like to discuss your child’s progress with their teacher, please arrange a time via email or phone. 

2026 Prep Enrolments - Enrolments Open on Tues 22 April  

For families that are interested in enrolling their child in Prep at Templestowe Park in 2026, please see the process below and our school website for further information.  2026 Prep enrolments open Tuesday 22 April (first day of Term 2). 

 

How to enrol at Templestowe Park PS

  • Contact our school office on 9846 2700 to book a school tour with our Principal or Assistant Principals.
  • Submit an Expression of Interest EOI if you would like to receive updates from Templestowe Park about enrolment news and our numerous transition programs.
  • Digital enrolments for Prep 2026 open on Tuesday 22 April 2025.  Please click here to submit your digital enrolment after Tuesday 22 April 2025.
  • Submit an enrolment application for Prep 2026 by Friday 25 July 2025.
  • You will be notified of the outcome of your application between Monday 28 July and Friday 8 August 2025. If you receive an enrolment offer, you should accept the offer by Friday 22 August 2025. Please note – all in zone student enrolments will be immediately accepted on receipt of student enrolment.
  • We will invite families to participate in our Prep 2026 Transition programs.
  • Prep students will commence school on Wednesday 28 January 2026.

For further information from the Department of Education about enrolling in Prep for 2026 please click here. 

Student Free Day – Tuesday 22 April (First day of Term 2) 

The school has planned to have a Student Free Day on Tuesday 22 April.  This is the first day of Term 2.  On this day all staff will undertake First Aid and CPR training.  This training is a requirement under our Occupational Health and Safety obligations. 

 

The first week of Term 2 will now only be two school days as there is Easter Monday and ANZAC Day on Friday. 

 

TeamKids will be offering full day care for families that require it.  Please click here to make a booking. 

Principals’ Award - Marlie B  

Marlie has worked incredibly hard to improve every aspect of her learning this year.

In the classroom, she listens attentively and always asks questions or puts her hand up to clarify information if she doesn’t understand something straight away. Her recent information report on Poland showed highly organised research and note taking, as well as thoughtful sentences. During mathematics, Marlie always works hard to improve her skillset and supplements her learning at home by regularly completing her Blitzmaster homework. Marlie is kind, friendly to all students, and her optimism and resilience this term has made all of us so proud. We love having you as a part of TPPS. Congratulations, Marlie! 

 

 

Have a fantastic holiday break and best wishes to all the families heading to Adelaide for the Easter basketball tournament! 

 

Mark Roberts                       Brian Cleary                                        Robyn Twyford 

PRINCIPAL                           ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL                  ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL