Principal's Report

“You’re off to great to great places. Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, so get on your way!” – Dr. Seuss 

Welcome to our final newsletter for 2022!  And what a year it has been!

After two years of disruptions due to COVID and many months and terms spent remote learning, it has been wonderful to experience a full year of uninterrupted time onsite at school. School life has returned to virtually normal now with almost all restrictions no longer in place. We are now able to hold meetings and school events in person. There are no restrictions on numbers attending and we are able to properly open our doors to our wonderful community again.

Final Assembly

Our final assembly will be held at 1:00 pm on Tuesday, December 20th in our undercover area. This will be a combination of our Awards Ceremony and our Year 6 Leaver's Assembly. We will also be announcing our 2023 Student Leaders at this assembly. We welcome all members of our community to attend.

Finishing Time on the Final Day

The 2022 school year will finish on Tuesday, 20th December, following our final assembly. Students from all year levels will be dismissed at 1:30pm.

Reports

The end of year student reports for students in Foundation to Year 6 will be made live on Friday 16 December. Teachers spend a substantial amount of time preparing these documents, please take the time to go through the report with your child/ren and encourage them to reflect on their year's progress and learning. All of the students at MPS should be very proud of their achievements this year - as are all the staff.

Acting Principal - Term 1, 2023

As you will be aware Mr Neil Butler has been on personal leave for a large part of this year. He will continue to be on leave throughout Term 1 2023. 

Last week, a panel consisting of Kerrie Anderson - our Senior Education Improvement Leader, two Principals from the Maroondah Network and the School Council President Clare Arthurs, ran a process to select an Acting Principal.

Ms Sharon Jacobs has been appointed to this position. Ms Jacobs has a great deal of experience in curriculum and in leading teams through change. She is very keen to meet the school community and become familiar with what makes Marlborough PS tick. 

I know you will all make her feel very welcome and show her what an amazing school we have.

2023 Curriculum Days and School Starting Date

School Council have approved the following Curriculum Days for next year. No students are required at school, please contact Camp Australia to book in for care on these dates.

• Friday January 27th and Monday January 30th (The first two days back which we use as a school to be prepared for the start of the year)
• Friday March 10th
• Monday November 6th

Please mark these dates down in your diary as they are pupil free days. Camp Australia will offer child care on these dates. 

The first day back for all students will be Tuesday 31st January 2023. 

2023 Session Times

As we bring in the new year, Marlborough Primary will be reverting back to five one-hour sessions and a longer lunch break as detailed below:

Finally, I would like to thank our staff who have worked tirelessly over the past year in support of all students and each other. 2022 was another year full of challenges and I am very proud of how our staff have once again supported our students, community and each other throughout these challenges. 

To all our departing and graduating students, on behalf of all of the staff at MPS, I would like to wish you luck throughout the remainder of your schooling. Take with you the positive memories of friendships, learning and extra-curricular experiences from over the years.  To quote Dr. Seuss (again): "You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose."

Please take time over the Summer Break to stop and recharge your battery.  Enjoy the time with family and friends, and stay safe.  We look forward to another wonderful year teaching and learning at MPS in 2023!

Have a fantastic final week!

Alec Baroni

Acting Principal