Principal's Report 

New Welcome Sign

At the beginning of this year, we installed a new feature at the entrance of our Administration building. Our new welcome sign features the languages represented by our Bimbadeen Heights students and families. As our school is growing, there is also space on the sign to add new languages as families from other muti-cultural backgrounds join our community. If you haven’t seen the sign, drop by the office to take a look (or see the photograph below). 

Community Acknowledgment of Country

At Bimbadeen Heights Primary School we have families from both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds. In 2021, our students participated in the National Acknowledgement of Country to celebrate the beginning of National Reconciliation Week. Acknowledging Country shows you accept and understand that no matter where you are across this nation, you are on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander lands, and you acknowledge ongoing connection to Country. From this activity, we developed a community acknowledgement in conjunction with our students and through feedback from our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families. Our community Acknowledgment of Country is now proudly displayed in our school foyer (see photograph below) and reads:

We acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Owners of the land on which we work, learn and play. We pay respect to Wurundjeri elders past, present and emerging and extend our respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and families of Bimbadeen Heights Primary School. 

School Council Elections

On Monday 21 February, we sent to parents and carers, via Sentral, a Notice of School Council election and call for nominations for this year’s School Council Election. We have 5 parent member positions and 2 school employee positions vacant for election (for a two-year term). 

Joining School Council is a wonderful way to support the continual improvement of the school, ensure good governance and learn more about how the school operates. To ensure accessibility for all members of our parent community to both become School Council members and hold positions of office, all School Council meetings will be accessible remotely via Webex. If you would like to nominate to stand for election, forms can be obtained from the office or by emailing the office on bimbadeen.heights.ps@education.vic.gov.au. Nominations must be lodged by returning your form to the office by 4:00pm on Monday 28 February 2022.

Last week we held the final meeting of the 2021 School Council. I would like to express a heartfelt thankyou to the School Councillors who have served our school well for many years and have finished their current tenure on council. Thank you to Andrew Lanigan, Morgan Gardiner, Kate Hession, Janet Hatvani, Paul Canning, and Lauren Elliott for your contributions to our school community though our School Council and subcommittees over the past two years. The contributions of parents and carers across our school helps ensure our community continues to grow and thrive.

The first meeting of the new 2022 School Council will be held on Wednesday night March 16th at 6:30pm where office-bearers will be elected, and sub-committees established. This will be followed by the March meeting of School Council at 7:00pm.

Pupil Free Day on Monday

We would like to remind all families that Monday 28 February is a Pupil Free Day for all Bimbadeen students. On this day, our staff will be involved in professional learning with our colleagues in the Lilydale Network. This learning will focus on improving Writing outcomes for all students across our network of schools. On this day, students are not required at school. Please ensure you have made appropriate arrangements for the care and supervision of students. 

OSHClub will be running a pupil free day program on Monday. If you need to book your child into the service, please contact the service through the Kidsoft parent portal or via email at bimbadeen@oshclub.com.au

Arrival Times at School

In our last newsletter, we reminded our community that the official on duty time at school is 8:45am for our staff. We understand that traffic flow and other challenges sometimes means an earlier arrival, however, we ask that parents and carers avoid dropping off their children any earlier than 8:45am. Whilst staff are on site, there is no formal supervision of students until this time and we are obviously conscious of student safety. 

Classroom Doors Open at 8:50am

This year we have continued with the approach of opening our classroom doors at 8:50am so students can settle themselves and get organised for the start of the school day. Please plan ahead to ensure you arrive at school on time for a 9am start. 

Our teachers have developed strong, positive routines at the beginning of the school day to support our students settle-in and engage in learning as soon as the bell rings. This includes marking the roll at 9am and beginning our teaching and learning activities straight away. We have implemented this approach of opening our classrooms 10 minutes before the bell to support the wellbeing and engagement of our students. 

When students arrive to school late, they take longer to settle into learning and this can be unsettling for both them and their peers. Please support your child to enjoy a positive start to the school day and their learning by planning ahead to ensure they arrive on time.

Late Arrivals

When students arrive at school after the bell, they will be marked as a late arrival. As we enter the fifth week of school, we hope that our families have created morning drop off routines to support your children to arrive at school on time. Please note, when a student arrives after 9am, a parent/carer must sign them in at the office. This is to provide a reason for the student’s late arrival and ensure our attendance records are up to date. We have duty of care for all students and it is imperative that we know when our students are at school, and maintain accurate records of attendance. 

This week, classroom teachers have sent home a print out of any unexplained late arrivals or absences. If you have received one of these notices, please provide a reason for the late arrival or absence, sign and date the notice and return to school with your child. The Department of Education requires us to have documented reasons for all late arrivals and absences.

Survey for Foundation Families

Families of children who have started their foundation year of school in 2022 can complete a short voluntary survey to share their recent experiences of starting school. 

The short 5-minute survey is now open and will close on Monday 14 March 2022.

The survey will help the Department of Education and Training better understand the experience of children and their families as they transition from early childhood settings to school.

The survey is confidential. This means information about you, your child and school will not be shared with the Department of Education and Training. Only general findings will be shared, and you will not be identified.

Students’ Mobile Phones 

We are very proud of our students in Years 3-6 who have responded with integrity after receiving a reminder about our Mobile Phone Policy. We regularly have students attend the office at the beginning and end of each school day to sign their mobile phones and other digital devices in and out of secure storage. The Department of Education and 

Training has a clear policy on student use of mobile phones during school hours. 

All Bimbadeen students who bring their mobile phone with them to school must sign in their device at the office upon arrival at school. All devices will be locked in a secure location during school times. Students then need to sign out and collect their mobile telephone at the end of the day.

 If your child brings a digital device to school, please discuss this expectation with them and ensure your child signs in their mobile device/s at the office by 8:55am and collects them after school by 3:40pm.

Parking, Traffic Management & Active Travel

This is a very common and regular section of our newsletter as traffic around our school is

such a challenge due to the narrow roads and minimal parking in the local area. Because of these traffic challenges, drop-off and pick-up times are the times when members of our community, particularly the children, are at most risk of accident. It is critical that all parents, carers and drivers take all precautions and care to reduce the risks to children. 

Please be patient and be extra vigilant to ensure that our children are safe. 

Please consider using active travel such as parking away from our school and letting your children walk the last couple of blocks to school or arriving around 8:45am in the morning or after 3:35pm to avoid the rush times. 

Protecting our children must be everyone’s priority.

Get to Know You Interviews

Thank you to the many parents and carers who have met with their child’s teacher as part of our Get to Know You Interviews. We believe that the relationship and partnership between parents/carers and teachers is critical to children’s learning success. 

If you were unable to make it to a Get to Know You Interview and have not yet met your child’s teacher, we strongly encourage you to drop in before or after school or contact them directly to arrange a time to meet with them to commence building a relationship. 

Knowing your child’s teacher and having a positive relationship with them is one of the best things you can do to help your child enjoy success at school this year. We cannot underestimate the importance of the partnership between home and school.

Back to School Kit

Thank you to the many families who have already returned the forms from the Back to School kit that was sent home at the end of the first week of school. 

If you have not yet read through the kit and/or returned the relevant forms to school, could you please do this ASAP.

Sentral App

Sentral is our main form of communication between school and home. We expect that parents and carers are checking Sentral regularly for upcoming dates on the calendar, newsletters, excursion notices and year and school level communications. If you have any problems with Sentral, please don’t hesitate to speak to our Sentral co-ordinator Melinda Ruscitti. The best way to get in contact with Ms Ruscitti is to email her at Melinda.Ruscitti@education.vic.gov.au. 

Shelley and Emma are also able to provide support at the office if you are experiencing difficulties with the app. We would like every parent and carer to have this app on their phones as it will make staying in touch with the school so much easier.

Free Sanitary Products

The Victorian Government is committed to continuing to provide free pads and tampons in all government primary, secondary and specialist schools. Sanitary items are a necessity, not a luxury, and this initiative will support tens of thousands of girls and young women in schools across the state. Our dispenser is located in the bathroom in the BER Building (Year 5 & 6 building) and is available for any students who may need sanitary products. The aim of this initiative is to:

• Provide students with the confidence that there will always be sanitary items available at school
• Relieve female students of the stigma, anxiety and discomfort that can be associated with menstruation and its management so they can focus on their studies
• Ease the cost of living for families.

We hope you have a wonderful week everyone. Please feel free to pop in for a chat with either of us, Mr Gill, or any other member of our Leadership team should you wish to discuss anything. Our doors are always open! 

Kind regards, 

Adele Gregson and Sabrina George