Message from the College Acting Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope you had a lovely holiday break and enjoyed some time with your families.

Next week our Year 3, 5, 7 and 9 students will undertake the NAPLAN Assessments. I would like to take this opportunity to remind everyone that this is just one assessment at a point in time. While this assessment provides some interesting information regarding learning, at Tarneit P9 College we use a range of formative tools to measure student understanding and determine their next level of learning. Good luck to all of the students involved and remember it is just about trying your best.

Below is the timetable for the NAPLAN Assessments.

Date	NAPLAN Assessment
Tuesday 14 May	Language Conventions and Writing
Wednesday 15 May	Reading
Thursday 16 May	Numeracy/Mathematics

This term we have launched the ‘Compass’ parent portal. All parents and carers should have received a letter in the mail with their individual log in details. Compass is a web-based system that is accessible in any web browser or by using the Compass school manager app on mobile devices. To access our parent portal go to our school website www.tarneitcollege.vic.edu.au and follow the links or head directly to the portal URL address https://tarneitcollege-vic.compass.education.

The parent portal allows parents to:

monitor their child’s attendance, and enter in explanations for late arrivals or absences.
download and view their child’s semester reports.
receive news items relating to the school and individual year levels.
view their students timetable.

If you have any questions on how to access the Compass parent portal or require any further assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact the college. Next term we will be releasing the Compass pay module, which enables parents to make payments and give permission for camps, excursions and incursions through the parent portal. We believe this will support our parents by streamlining the administration process. More information will be sent home throughout this term.

As you are all aware, over the last three weeks we visited our Sister School College Sainte Marie in France. This was the first time our College has travelled to France and it was an incredible success. We had 12 students and 4 staff members who spent two weeks exploring Rouen and Paris, learning about their education system and engaging in the French culture and language. The buzz and excitement amongst our students upon their return was not only wonderful to observe but contagious! Once again I would like to thank all the staff and students involved in making this visit a success. We now look forward to planning their return visit in 2020.

Next week we will be recognising and acknowledging the very important contributions made by Education Support (ES) staff in our College. Education Support staff have many roles and responsibilities in our College, including:

Our classroom based staff who provide support for students with needs. Working under the direction of the class teacher they support individuals as well as small groups of children.
Our Administration Team who undertake a myriad of daily administrative tasks that keeps our College functioning smoothly.
Our Welfare and Learning team who provide additional support for students and families, ensuring their learning and wellbeing needs are catered for.
Our Grounds and Facilities team who do an amazing job developing our grounds and ensuring they are maintained and safe for everyone.
Our Science, Digital Technology, Food Technology, Library and Hands on Learning Technicians who are incredibly knowledgeable and very helpful to everyone who needs their assistance.

This group of staff members make a huge contribution to the wellbeing and effective running of our College. On behalf of the College community, I would like to say a very big ‘thank you’ to them.

Kind Regards

Paris Spencer

Acting College Principal

Messages from Assistant Principals

Dear Parents and Carers,

P- 2 House Comp

Over the first 3 weeks of term, our Prep – 2 students have been competing in activities to earn points for their College Houses. These games were designed by our College House Captains for our students and were created to promote student collaboration as well as develop students’ resilience and inclusiveness. Our Prep-2 students have enjoyed participating in these activities with their class and look forward to the results being announced at our next P-4 assembly. A big Well done to all our P-2 students and teachers for a successful P-2 Games.

Werribee Mansion

In week 5, our Year 1 students will attend the Werribee Mansion as part of our Investigations unit: Past and Present Family Life. All students have been exploring their own families’ personal history in class, including past and present toys, houses and life. At the Mansion, they will investigate how people lived in the past including how transport and homes have changed over time. A highlight of the excursion is the visit to the toy room where students can play and interact with toys from the past. All permission notes are due back in Week 4. This is a great experience and thank you to our Year 1 teachers for organising and providing this opportunity to our students.

Prep Breakfast

On Thursday 23 May, our Prep Students are invited to have breakfast together with their classroom teachers and students, before School. This experience is designed to build independence and inclusiveness. This is a wonderful experience for our Prep students and all money and notes are to be returned by Thursday 16 May. This day would not be possible without the effort and support from our Prep teachers, making breakfast for our 200 Prep students!

2020 Prep Transition

As you may be aware, on Tuesday 14 May, the College is holding our 2020 Prep Information Night. This night is for all 2020 Prep parents to attend and receive information about their child’s potential enrolment. All parents will receive an information pack and have the opportunity to ask questions. We welcome all current and new families to attend. If you know any new family that wish to enrol their Prep child at our College, please encourage them to attend.

Matthew Naudi

Assistant Principal Prep - Year 2

Dear Parents and Carers,

Next week the Year 3 students will sit the NAPLAN tests for the first time in their schooling. This can sometimes lead to anxiety in students, however as a parent you can support your child by reassuring them that NAPLAN is just one part of their school program, and by reminding them on the day to simply try their best. Our teachers will ensure students are familiar with the types of questions in the tests and will provide appropriate support and guidance, we do not recommend excessive preparation for NAPLAN.

School camps are very unique and special experiences. They support students in the development of independence and self-regulation, as well as provide students with educational experiences outside the normal boundaries of the school grounds. Our Year 4 team have done a tremendous job in organising camp for the 30 and 31 May and are looking forward to sharing the camp experience with your students. Our prime objective is not only to support the education, social and emotional development of our students, but to also return them both safely and full of positive experiences and personal growth.

Mark Zahra

Assistant Principal Years 3-4

Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome back to Term 2. We have a very busy few weeks upcoming in Year 5 and 6. Next week, our Year 5 students will start tom complete NAPLAN assessments. A reminder to parents to encourage students to try their best and discuss with them about their feelings and concerns. Let your child know that feeling anxious about a test is normal and reassure them that this is just one form of assessment and that success is not just determined by one piece of assessment.

Our expression of interest for Year 5 camp is now closed and parents will receive some notes about camp in the coming weeks. Please ensure you sign these forms and return them to your child’s teacher as soon as possible. Our students and teachers are very excited to attend Alexandra Adventure Resort in Week 9 of this term.

Parents of students in Year 6 should receive expression of interest notes for Year 6 camp in the coming weeks for Term 3. We encourage all students to attend this camp and remind parents that if that have a valid health care card, they can utilise the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund to help with some financial support. If you haven’t already, please come see one of our administration team at the front office to complete a form.

A reminder to parents in Year 6 to return Year 7 preference forms to classroom teachers by no later than Friday 17 May.

Best of luck to all students sitting NAPLAN next week! If you would like to discuss any concerns or require some information, please come and see me anytime.

Barry Devlin

Assistant Principal Years 5-6

Dear Parents and Carers,

In the senior years of the school, our Year 7, 8 and 9 students have been hard at work with a focus on assessments and exams at the end of the term.

Our Year 7 students are now in to their second term of secondary school and will be taking part in a range of incursions in the coming weeks including a Headspace Workshop in week 5, focusing on remaining safe while interacting online. They are also taking the time to prepare adequately for NAPLAN in week 4.

The Year 8 students have also taken part in a Headspace Workshop focusing on the importance of maintaining positive relationships on social media and maintaining personal safety when interacting with others online. A large number of our Year 8 students are looking forward to taking part in the interschool soccer competition later this term, which we anticipate will be a successful sporting event for both the girls and boys.

Our Year 9 students have been extremely busy so far this term. They have taken part in an online future careers quiz, that provides students and parents with insight in to some possible future careers. The results and reports are individualised and will be followed up with 1 on 1 careers counselling next term. They have also been preparing for the upcoming NAPLAN tests and have taken part in excursions as part of their Year 9 elective subjects.

Some reminders regarding some important dates:

Our 2020 Year 7 Information Night will be held on Tuesday 14 May in the College Theatre, as well as Year 7 and Year 10 Transition forms due back at school on Friday 17 May.

John Eskander

Assistant Principal Year 7-9

Dear Parents and Carers,

Term 2 is always a very busy Term. And this year is no exception. We have a number of students participating in the Victorian State School Spectacular this year with a number of different roles across the production. This year we are fortunate to not only have students in the mass choir and dance production as well as supporting backstage but Neema in Year 9 will be representing the College as principal vocalist. The production will take place in September and is also a televised event. It is a great state-wide production with multiple shows held at Rod Laver Arena. For more information on the spectacular, please see this below websites: https://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/events/pages/spectacular.aspx?Redirect=1

Digital Technology

Parents Guide to Compass