Principal and Assistant Principal's Page
Principal's Report
Mother’s Day
We hope that all of our Mothers had a great day last Sunday. Mother’s Day started at Huntingdale on Friday, with Team Kids hosting a breakfast for our mothers. There was a delicious spread of food, including scones baked by the children and it was lovely to see so many of our mothers being able to drop in before work or school drop off. I sincerely thank Ciara our Director of Service and her team for arranging such a fantastic event. It was a great opportunity for parents to see how Team Kids have improved the learning space in the hall and providing great activities for kids to enjoy before and after school.
2020 enrolments
We are receiving lots of interest in parents enrolling their children in the Foundation for 2020. We encourage any of our current parents with siblings starting foundation next year to enrol as soon as possible. Please see Gill at the office and she can help you.
Do you know of families or friends who need to enrol their child? Please encourage them to contact the office for advice on enrolment and to book a school tour. We are also accepting enrolments for years 1-6.
Japan Updates - A New Emperor
The 30th of April was the official end of the Heisei era in Japan. On the 1st May a new era, the Reiwa era, began.
Heisei translates roughly as achieving peace; Reiwa means beautiful harmony. Eras follow emperors in Japan.
The 85-year-old Akihito will step down from what is known as the Chrysanthemum Throne. The last time an emperor abdicated was in 1817. His 59-year-old son, Naruhito, becomes the 126th head of the world's oldest continuous ruling dynasty, which has a chrysanthemum as its imperial standard.
Rather than having to mourn an emperor's death, the nation will instead be able to celebrate the change of head of state. The nation had a record 10-day holiday called Golden Week from April 27 to May 6, which included a new national day off in honour of Naruhito's ascension.
Pies for Japan
Australian icon Four’ N Twenty pies have announced they will be selling pies in Japan. They will be sold at the Rugby World Cup later this year and at the Olympics next year. The pies will also start appearing on supermarket shelves in Japan. April 20 this year was pie day in Japan.
Attendance Data
Our attendance data at Huntingdale is generally very good. We showed great improvement in our data last year which is fantastic. Most of our absences are for illness and overseas travel. We congratulate parents on being proactive and informing the office when their child is not attending school. FlexiBuzz is the preferred method for letting the school know about your child’s absence, as in the morning the office is always busy and we would prefer to keep phone calls to a minimum if possible at all.
In Term 2 so far Foundation students have the best attendance rate at 93%.
One area we need to improve is late arrivals. In the month of April (which also had school holidays) we had 111 late arrivals. This can be improved!
We will keep you updated on our attendance data as the year progresses.
Reminder: Curriculum Day
Just a reminder that we have a Curriculum Day on Friday 24 May. Teachers will focus on assessment and moderation as well as student reporting. Team Kids will run a whole day care service on the day for families who need it. Places are still available.
Think You Know- Cyber safety Information
Recently, we had a parent information session about cyber safety. Think You Know aims at educating parents about their children’s safety when online. They have an excellent resource book. Over the next few newsletters I will share a page with the school community. This fortnight the focus is on gaming.
Have a great fortnight.
Ruth Biddle
Assistant Principal's Report
I hope you had a lovely mother’s day with your family. It was nice to see so many mums come along for morning tea with your children. I enjoyed the mother’s day morning tea prepared by Team kids and had a nice chat with many of our mothers. Thank you to Team Kids and the children who cooked the yummy scones and banana bread for us.
Request for Homestay Families
We have been asked to host a group of 20 Grade 6 primary school students from Minato-ku in Tokyo from 24th July to 29th July 2019 and are looking for families who are able to homestay 2 students during these dates.
If you are interested in hosting 2 students or would like any information, please speak to Gill in the office by Thursday 16th May. To assist with associated expenses, there is a payment of $45 per night per student.
Helpers Required for Japan Festival –Sunday 19th May 2019
We require some volunteers for our Japan Festival school booth between 9-5pm.
Date: Sunday 19th May 2019
Place: Box Hill Town Hall
If you are happy to and are able to contribute your time, please sign up from website below;
Event Code: 4qqfd
We would love to see as many of our school community as possible on the day.
Our Taiko Group and Choir will perform on the stage from 11:35am. Please come along to see their performances.
Date and Time: Sunday 19th May 2019 10:00 AM ~ 5:00 PM
Venue: Box Hill Town Hall, 1022 Whitehorse Road, Box Hill
Entry Fee
Ages 12 & more: $5, Ages 6-11: $3
◆ Free Entry ◆
Children up to 5 years old
Disabled persons (+ 1 carer)
Pensioners Card Holders
Seniors Card Holders
Persons dressed in Kimono or Yukata
Persons dressed in full Cosplay Costumes
Performances
Japanese Taiko Drumming, Traditional Dance, Karate, Shamisen, Choir, Karaoke Show, etc.
Exhibits
Ikebana, Bonsai, Bullet Train (Shinkansen) Model Railway, etc.
Demonstrations
Tea Ceremony, Shogi Japanese chess, Origami, Ground Golf, Tennis, etc.
About 110 Stalls expected
Takoyaki, Yakitori, Japanese Sweets, Tea, Japanese Toys, Ceramics, Books, Craft, Kimono, Yoyo game, and lots more
The Football/Soccer Development Program
South Oakleigh College
South Oakleigh College is commencing a new Sports Development Program in Football and Soccer later this Term.
The Football/Soccer Development Program is aimed at all interested students in Years 7 – 12 and provides opportunities for boys and girls at the College to improve their strategic, tactical and physical skills through a specialist sports program.
All students, even those who have not played football or soccer before, will have the opportunity to develop their skills in a supportive environment. Students will receive expert training from legends of the game Kevin Sheedy & Archie Thompson, as well as learn skill development from our specially trained Sports staff.
Reminders…School Uniform
All students are also required to wear the Huntingdale uniform, hat and school bag.
We are aiming to build school pride with our students. This includes pride in our learning and achievements, and also in the way we present ourselves. As per our School Dress Code Policy we ask that:
- Students wear appropriate footwear for school activities, e.g. runners for sport, preferably in black. White or navy socks should be worn only.
- Any accessories such as tights, scarves, beanies, bike shorts be navy blue. Students will be asked to remove any accessories that are not in school colours.
- During art/craft activities, that children will wear protective clothing.
- Jewellery such as dangling earrings, necklaces are not to be worn due to safety concerns. Studs and sleeper earrings are acceptable.
- Makeup is not be worn, except when part of a school performance or dress up event.
- Fingernails should be without nail polish, natural and of a practical length.
- Hair be well groomed, of natural colour, tied back and off the face with accessories in the school colours of teal blue, navy or white.
We understand that from time to time keeping up with washing can be difficult. If your child is not in school uniform for a day, please write a note in your child’s diary.
Parents can view the full Student Dress Code Policy on our website.
Please make sure you will write child’s name on their items, so it may be returned to their owners.
Naomi Mori-Hanazono
Assistant Principal