Introduction

May I take this opportunity to introduce myself as the new Principal at Plenty Parklands. After an extensive application and interview process, I was fortunate to be offered the position as Principal at the end of March. Having taught here from 2006 to 2010, I am aware of the standards expected at the school, the supportive parent body and I am very familiar with the fantastic student group who attend each day ready to learn. Thank you to the many staff, parents and students who have already made me feel very welcome.

After leaving here at the end of 2010 I took up an Assistant Principal position at Epping Views Primary School and worked there for twelve years during a population boom that saw enrolments grow from 200 to 1600 students. My time at Epping Views coincided with numerous periods of further study and various stints as Acting Principal.

Personally, my family of five includes my wife who is also involved in Education as an Assistant Principal and my three children aged 16, 14 and 10. I spend much of my time driving the boys to Basketball and Football matches and taking my daughter to swimming lessons. Any other spare time is filled with gardening, time at the beach or watching Collingwood, Melbourne United or Melbourne Victory.

First Impressions

My first three weeks have been busy with Principal Induction sessions, but I have been able to visit classrooms, sit in on specialist sessions and spent time outside where I have noticed the popularity of the playgrounds, sports field and students involved in games of Four Square. My initial impressions are that students are safe, appear engaged during learning time and that staff are experienced and are delivering lessons consistent with the rest of their teaching teams. As time goes on, I will share further observations via this post.

Newsletter

We are pleased to announce the return of the PPPS newsletter after a period where it was in recess due to office staffing pressures and COVID restrictions that required our focus. As we get back into the routine of collating information to share with the school community, we aim to publish a monthly newsletter in week 4 and week 8 of each term for the remainder of the year. This will be supplemented by an increased presence via our Facebook page and of course, ongoing Compass posts to parents.

Staffing

We have a number of staffing changes that have taken place recently and we are in the fortunate position that we have been able to access very capable replacements. Ms Laura Zurzolo has joined our Administration team and has instantly built a rapport with many of our students. Ms Caitlin Moritis has replaced Mr Wayne Wood in Year 3 and has quickly developed relationships with her students and fellow team members. We farewell long time maintenance manager, Mr Rob Peel who has been appointed as the Facilities Manager at a large secondary college in the northern suburbs. We thank him for many years of great service.

Camping Program

I was delighted to attend both the Year 5 Camp at Forest Edge and the Year 6 City Camp. Both camps were excellently coordinated by our camp leaders Mr Lachlan Challis and Mr Lachlan Dixon. As a parent myself, I kept a close eye on the standard of food, accommodation and safety protocols and I left very confident that we have chosen high level camping venues for our students.

Parent Support

I was amazed to see how many parents/guardians were heavily involved in our school camping program. Without parents as a part of the staffing profile for camps, costs would be significantly higher for all families.

It was wonderful to see that we had up to fifteen parent volunteers for our extraordinarily successful Mother’s Day Stall at the beginning of this term. We thank each and every person for their support and hope to see them back soon. We look forward to having parents and grandparents back onsite as an integral part of the learning process at Plenty Parklands as soon as possible.

Staying Healthy

Can I please ask for your assistance in keeping all members of our school community safe by ensuring you stay vigilant with following processes to reduce the spread of COVID. We have faced the challenge of staffing shortages already this term, with many classes having either a replacement teacher or a class split. Please be assured that we are doing our best to maintain normal teaching and learning. The fact that Julie Nixon has such a strong group of experienced replacement staff that she has built up over time is a great asset for our community at a time when other schools are really struggling.

NAPLAN

Our Year 3 and 5 students have been sitting state-wide NAPLAN testing over the past two weeks. Due to high levels of student absences, we are currently organising extra test sessions to ensure all students have had the chance to demonstrate their skills and knowledge.

Professional Practice Day

The Department recommends schools hold their professional practice day for Term 2 on the same day for all staff. Principals were asked to schedule their common Term 2, 2022 professional practice day in consultation with their school council. We have attempted to give parents and carers as much notice as possible about the date on which students will not be required to attend school. Our proposed date is Tuesday 14th June, the day after the public holiday for the Queen’s birthday. Camp Australia will be available onsite as required. Please contact them directly.

New Building Project

In my brief time in the role, I have already had two meetings with the architects overseeing our new building development. The ideas shared were impressive and will provide outstanding areas for learning for your children. Some developments are long overdue improvements to existing spaces whilst others provide new structures on the far side of the school. We will keep you updated as we move closer to a start date on the works.

David Whewell | Principal

Plenty Parklands Press

Students, staff and parents working together in a friendly atmosphere to achieve the best learning outcomes in primary school education

Issue 1 · 19 May 2022

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