Hello parents and families,

We have all settled into our Term 2 program with ease and it seems there is momentum beginning to build as we continue to hope the worst of the pandemic is behind us and we can function in a somewhat altered yet familiar school life.

Whilst masks are gone, checking in is over and isolating as close contacts is no longer a restriction, I have been able to pause as a principal and reflect on leading a school during such unprecedented times for education. I find myself feeling incredibly grateful that our school community was so supportive of the many changes and rules that have been continually updated. This is not a given when running a school and I have a deep respect for the way our school community pulled together and supported each other and the staff at WPS.

If the momentum can continue, we have a packed term with our first excursions, incursions and whole school events in over 2 years.

Open Night

Our Open Night is a date to note down in the diary. We are really going to offer our families a chance to reconnect with our school and see the amazing work that is taking place in our classrooms. We will be showcasing many areas of the school and invite you and your family to come along to engage with each other and simply celebrate that we can now get together.

The night will begin at 5:30pm - 7:00pm on Tuesday 24th May in our classrooms. Writing pieces, learning goals, inquiry projects, ICT, and STEM projects are all out for you to share with your child/ren. We will also be running a short performance in the Bampi at 7pm which will include songs from our soon to be formed junior choir and a performance with Kevin and our Bushband. We hope to see you there.

Working Bee

We have our Working Bee coming up on Sunday 15th May at 9am. I know that families are incredibly busy on weekends with sports so anytime you can offer us will be greatly appreciated. In addition to the general maintenance and gardening, we are having the old portable building next to the stone building removed in the week beginning the 16th May and so we need to empty the space and have a clean out of old equipment and furniture.

Lunchtime Clubs are expanding in Term 2...

Daily Library club

We now have the library open every lunchtime for our students to come and spend time with their friends, colouring in, drawing, building marble runs, chess or just simply reading a book. It is incredibly important that our students have a space they can come to if they are finding the full hour at lunchtime difficult to manage. The library is supervised and our teachers help these students connect with other students and build peer relationships in a safe space. We also have some of our Grade 4/5 students coming along to read their stories that they have published as part of the writing program. One of the best ways to encourage young authors is to give them an opportunity and audience to share their work.

Boomwhackers Percussion Club

Boomwhakers are tuned percussion instruments that can be used in an ensemble style of musical exploration. Children will be able to work together to create songs and compose as they learn about rhythm, the chromatic scale and reading music.

If you have never seen a boomwhacker I can promise you your kids will love them. Our 2/3 teacher, Davide, is very excited to be starting this club and is eagerly awaiting the delivery of his kit of chromatic whackers. Keep your eyes out for a letter on compass to register your childs/rens expression of interest as numbers will be limited.

We now have our Sports Captains available at the beginning of every lunchtime to lend out sports equipment for students to use. Students can sign out balls, bats and nets to play games or practice skills. Our Sports Captains will also be there at the end of lunch to collect the equipment and ensure all borrowed equipment is returned. Again, we are working hard to provide our students with supports during play by providing them with equipment to promote team sports, fitness and motor skills.

We will be also formally beginning our School Choir in the next couple of weeks. A notice will go out to families to register your child/ren if they are interested in participating in the choir. Rehearsals will likely be Monday lunchtime and I will be running the choir. I come from a long line of musicians and singers, but mostly enjoy developing children’s love of music. The social benefit of being in a choir is also important and goes a long way to helping our junior school students form friendships with peers across levels.

NAPLAN – Next Week ~ Grade 3 & 5

Next week we are rolling out our NAPLAN testing. This is the first year where all subjects except for Year 3 Writing will be completed online. We encourage our students to not think too hard about the NAPLAN and their results over the coming days. You will likely have heard the expression that NAPLAN is just a snapshot, and this is very true. We have assessment tools that we use daily in our practice that provides us with a whole range of data that we can feedback to our students and use when planning units of work and explicit teaching. The schedule for NAPLAN will be sent out tomorrow to the relevant families. If you have any questions or are concerned about your child’s anxiety around the testing time, please contact your teacher and we will help your child manage these feelings. Some student’s, during any testing are confident and resilient when undergoing assessment but we also know that for some students it becomes a big source of anxiety and pressure. We would like to help any students who are feeling this way.

Take care

Nieta

OHSC