Principal's Report
99% of the Way There!
With the recent State Budget announced, it made me reflect upon the two years since FPS received $7m – for our second campus, and to upgrade our existing campus. It has been a whirlwind two years, with lots to occupy all our thoughts, and it is easy to forget how the place has changed in this time.
The building works is in its final stages. We have enjoyed seeing the ongoing improvements to the shelter shed, including the replacement ceiling panels, the installation of the Perspex panels, and most recently, new timber benches. The final task for this area is the painting of the art mural by one of our parents. It is going to look sensational!
You will probably have noticed the works close to the Fairfield Road gate. This is due to plumbing issues that were identified when the new storage shed was installed. We have been experiencing water damage in parts of the school, which has been partly caused by a blockage in the existing pipework in this area. Hopefully, the replacement of these pipes will alleviate this problem.
Everyone (including me) is eagerly awaiting the removal of the shipping container, located next to the bike shed. Fingers crossed that it won’t be too long until we farewell the container and that we can start using our new shed.
Last week I ran school tours for prospective parents, for the first time in two years. During these tours I reflected upon how much has changed for the school, how fortunate we have been with the funding that we have received, and how proud we all our of our wonderful school. Pride in our school is the starting block when continually aiming for school improvement, and now the sky is the limit.
Teacher Peer Observations
Our teachers undergo termly peer observations, where a teacher/s will watch one of their peers teach a lesson with the aim of providing feedback. As part of this, teachers reflect and ask themselves questions like, “How is my teaching going?” and “What could I do differently/better?”
This process involves four main steps
- Teachers self-reflect and identify some areas of their teaching practice on which they are interested in receiving feedback.
- The teacher being observed, in discussion with the teacher undertaking the observation, will identify and agree on the focus of the observation.
- The lesson observation.
- After the lesson, quality feedback will be provided to teachers by the teacher(s) that observed their class.
To align with our Annual Implementation Plan, the focus for these visits has been Writing lessons.
Why engage in peer observation?
- To provide opportunities to discuss challenges and successes with trusted colleagues.
- To support the sharing of ideas and expertise among teachers.
- To build a community of trust through opening classroom practice to a wider audience.
- To support a focus on improving the impact of learning.
- To contribute to the collective efficacy of the whole school.
Concert with Thornbury High School
Last night I went to Thornbury High School (THS) to watch their school concert, which included performances from our own Choir, Orchestra and Brass players. It was wonderful to see our students perform so confidently in front of such a large audience in an unfamiliar setting. There was rapturous applause after each FPS piece.
Thank you to our Performing Arts teachers, Keri and Olivia, for their coordination and support. Thank you to the staff at THS for supporting such a wonderful partnership. A special mention to Sean Nihill, for his brass tuition of our students.
The short video below shos the standing ovation given by the Thornbury High students as the FPS students headed back into the green room after their performance.
Sustainability Work
You will regularly read about some of the fantastic work that our Environmental Sustainability Working Group gets up to in our newsletter. There is no better way to understand the wonderful work that has happened in recent years, than watching our Sustainability Matters video, shown at a recent Darebin Council Sustainability Matters forum.
We continue to be thankful to the many people who have made significant contributions in the area of Sustainability. Thank you to Jourdan and our School Community Leaders for helping put together such a rich video. See the Sustainability page of this newsletter for more information about the project.
Trivia Night Success
I have heard great reports about how well the Music Trivia on Saturday night went. Thornbury Theatre was fortunate to be visited by a host of Hollywood celebrities, who had a fun night displaying their costumes, trivia knowledge and dance moves.
Thank you to the many parents that helped organise this memorable event. Volunteers assisted with setting up the room, organising the band, setting up the auction, selling raffle tickets, and much more besides. A special thank you to parent, Megan Fairbank, for coordinating all the moving parts to make this event come to life.
We look forward to sharing the amount raised at Friday’s assembly.
Student Attitude Survey
Over the next two weeks, students in Years 4 – 6 will be completing the Attitudes to School Survey. This is an annual student survey offered by the Department of Education and Training to assist our school to gain an understanding of students' perceptions and experience of school. Students will be asked about their thoughts and feelings in relation to their school, their learning and peer relationships.
Your child will complete the survey online during school hours using a purpose built secure online survey tool. All responses to the survey are kept anonymous in the response file. Personal identification data will not be recorded in the survey response file. This ensures that the confidentiality of your child’s responses is protected at all times.
The survey results will be reported back to the school in an aggregate form throughout the survey period and is shared at the school’s AGM in March 2022.
Class Splits when a Teacher is Absent
Whilst there are times when we split some of our smaller grades when a teacher is absent, during recent weeks, we have been forced to split classes more than we would like. This is due to a shortage of replacement teachers and a high demand for them across many schools in Melbourne. We are in constant communication with our agency who is working to secure replacement teachers as needed.
When we are forced to split classes, this will generally be done within the same year level area of the school; Foundation, Year 1/2, Year 3/4 or Year 5/6. Where possible, students will complete the same work as the grade into which they are split. Otherwise they will be given work to complete by the teacher who has split them. We realise that this isn’t ideal and we hope that the need to split classes reduces over time.
COVID Restrictions
As you are probably aware, COVID restrictions are coming into affect again in Melbourne. At this stage the only change at FPS is that face masks are to be worn by adults whilst inside the school. Teachers will not be required to wear face masks while teaching, but those who wish to do so, can. We are waiting for further updates from the Department of Education and will communicate those via Compass when available.
Mid-Term Assembly
During terms two, three and four, we hold a mid-term assembly, weather permitting.
We will be holding this term’s assembly on Friday at 3pm, in the fig tree area.
I look forward to seeing you there.
~ Paul Wallace, Principal