Principal's Report
As always, lots of exciting things happening around the school - keep your eyes on the Facebook page for more updates (details below). Check out some of the things that have been happening recently - disco, classroom work, sports, patch and excursions featured recently. Look out for some updates about our very excited Year 4 students heading off next week to Phillip Island Camp. A huge thank you to the staff involved with these camps, it is a huge commitment for them to make these events happen, putting their lives and families on hold to create this amazing experience for our students. A special thank you also to our parent helpers, for supporting our staff and students on camp.
Athletics
Thank you to Merissa and amazing team who organised an amazing athletics events for the Year 3-6 students last week. Well done to our amazing students and our Captains who assisted in the smooth running of the event and we look forward to further events for some of the students as they move through to the next stage.
Running Track
On the athletics front I am also pleased to update the community that our application has progressed through the North Eastern Victoria Region office and I am now working closely with the Victorian Schools Building Authority to progress the upgrade. Thankyou to the ongoing support of our families contributing towards this project.
STUDENT SAFETY
As Spring approaches and more children are walking and riding to school it is important to remind your children about Stranger Danger and general safety as they travel to and from school.
Please speak with your children about actions to take should they experience such incidents. At school, as part of the Wellbeing Programs, teachers discuss various situations with students and how to keep themselves safe from harm. Some tips for parents are, make sure children walk in groups, stay on the main walking paths, walk home at the same time as other school families, discuss where other families live on the walk home if they ever needed, come to school at around the same time as others and utilise TheirCare if an early start or late finish is required.
The Department of Education has an Emergency Management system where alerts are recorded and shared with neighbouring schools so that all local communities are aware. Local police are also extra vigilant when a report is made. We must work together as a community to keep each other safe especially in and around our school environment.
Safety for kids is a great resource for proactive ways to discuss safety when out and about.
The Resilience Project
Today’s presentation from The Resilience Project is all about Mindfulness.
Mindfulness is an intentional awareness generated by paying attention to a whole experience; being present in the moment. It’s important to explore what mindfulness strategies are helpful for you.
Thousands of studies have proven benefits include reduced stress, reduced rumination, increased memory, increased cognitive function and physical health benefits through improved immunity.
View Part 4 of the series here:
Part 4 - Mindfulness: https://theresilienceproject.com.au/2023-parent-carer-hub-inspire-hugh-martin/
Hugh highlights some things that mindfulness improves; concentration, quality of thoughts and equanimity (ability to let go). He also shares some mindfulness strategies to use and implement yourself and with your children.
For mental health resources and support information, visit The Resilience Project’s Support Page.
WE WANT OUR PARENTS / CAREGIVERS / GUARDIANS TO TELL US WHAT THEY THINK!
Our school is conducting a survey to find out what parents / caregivers / guardians think of our school. The Parent / Caregiver / Guardian Opinion Survey is an annual survey offered by the Department of Education that is designed to assist schools in gaining an understanding of families’ perceptions of school climate, student behavior, and student engagement. The survey is optional but we encourage all families to participate. Our school will use the survey results to help inform and direct future school planning and improvement strategies.
A random sample of approximately 30 per cent of parents / caregivers / guardians has been selected to participate in this year’s survey
The Parent / Caregiver / Guardian Opinion Survey will be open from Monday 7 August to Friday 8 September 2023.
The survey will be conducted online, only takes 20 minutes to complete, and can be accessed at any convenient time within the survey period on desktop computers, laptops, tablets or smartphones. The online survey will be available in English and 10 other languages including Arabic, Greek, Hakha Chin, Hindi, Japanese, Punjabi, Simplified Chinese, Somali, Turkish, and Vietnamese.
Please speak to your child’s teacher if you would like more information.
Minecraft for Education
You might have noticed your child in Year 3, 4, 5 or 6 talking more about Minecraft at school. We share access with our senior classes to the Minecraft Education app using heir Department of Education log in details. Students have been spending time familiarising themselves with Minecraft, and teachers in Years 3-6 have been investigating the integration of Minecraft into Literacy, Numeracy and Integrated programs. Minecraft Education is a fantastic resource that we are lucky to have access to. Students are engaged in the program (and many have better skills than our teachers!) and we are using it alongside other curriculum areas.
An example in the last week has been our Year 3 and 4 students creating buildings in their Minecraft worlds and writing procedural texts on the steps they took to do this. Minecraft is safe online environment that encourages digital collaboration. Students will have access to their Minecraft Education app at home, however as with all online access with our iPads, once the device leaves our network, we can no longer monitor or control what students are able to access. Please make your own house rules regarding your child’s access to Minecraft Education at home.
We have included some links below if you would like to read further about devices in classrooms and how using technology, such as Minecraft, is benefiting the future of our modern day kids!
BPS Facebook Page
Don't forget to check out our school Facebook page. There is always lots of exciting things posted which gives a nice insight into the happenings around the school. The Weekly Wrap Up is always good to see what has happened throughout the week - last week's video from Year One students about Digital Citizenship was a good reminder to all students!
https://www.facebook.com/BlackburnPrimarySchool
