A Word from the Principal

A Warm Welcome to our Weeden Heights Community

Welcome back to term three! With an extra week of staying at home, I can only imagine how much of a challenge that was for many families.   I truly hope that the students got to have a break from the disruptive term 2.  I most certainly did not predict a return to remote learning and heard the news the same time as the public. 

I still would like to congratulate you all on your outstanding effort to make remote learning happen last term.  A team effort by the Weeden Heights community!  Now moving into, Remote Learning V2, I am feeling a sense of calmness as we have all done this before and have a very good idea about what to expect.  Thank-you for the positive feedback at the school gate, through the Google Meets and the student led conferences. 

Remote Learning Version 2

The five curriculum days last week were most valuable.  Staff have critically analysed the student and parent survey results and discussed at length their own feedback about remote and flexible learning in term 2.  We had a very productive time and came up with the model that you are now experiencing. I have sent you information about this and I am hearing that parents are supportive of the changes.  We have all learnt a lot!

We spent time writing the Parent Google Classroom help guide.  This was sent to you all on the email.  I would have thought someone would have written this already but we went right from scratch.  I hope this is beneficial for you all and it is a reference guide so there is no need to read it cover to cover as you have all set up the Google classroom already. 

Extensive time was placed into professional learning to ensure that we are all using the same formats for student learning tasks and video formats across all the classrooms.  Staff shared some of their instructional videos from term 2 and were given warm and cool feedback!  The rest of the time was used to turn their planned classroom program into an online version.  I do acknowledge that teachers are now spending hours on something that would normally take 20 minutes.  They have become very good at editing videos and are producing some great instructional videos that include screen sharing and footage of themselves to support learning further.  Thank you to the staff for participating in a pretty ‘full on’ week of learning and preparing for term 3.

I really do appreciate all of the extra time it takes to make these programs on line while still differentiating for all of the ability levels within each class.  We are most definitely moving forward with our remote learning implementation plan. Thank you staff!

Also a big thank you to nearly every family who came to collect their books, pencils and take home books on Friday.  It was a great way to say hello and reconnect with the classroom teacher. I am confident that the quality of the students work presentation will improve through the use of their exercise books with dotted thirds and their own pencils etc.  We also were able to hand out take home books for juniors or exchange novels for years 2 and on-wards.  The school will be open for all students next Friday to allow and exchange of books again.  We need to keep reading!

Welcome

During this hectic time we have welcomed two new families to Weeden Heights PS. A big hello and warm welcome to the Lowry-Griffiths family and the Rottler family.  Our students will get to meet Charlotte in P/1 and Charmaine in 5/6M during the Google Meets and we are very much hoping to meet you both in person very soon .  

Student Led Conferences

This week you will have participated in student led conference with your child and their teacher.  For the very first time this has occurred on a Google Meet remotely.  Thank-you for coming up to school to pick up the portfolios.  The student led conferences are an excellent opportunity for your child to take responsibility for their learning and discuss the evidence that they have produced to support the teacher’s judgments from the classroom and specialist teachers in their school reports.  Thank you to all those parents who logged into the meet and participated. 

Bright Beginnings Transition Session

Our second transition session will occur this Friday.  Unfortunately it is going to be online again but Mrs Michalski did a brilliant job last time working with four year olds in video conference.  They can be a tough crowd but they did like looking through their special pack that we sent home where they got to make a paper plate spider with folded colourful legs. Our first option is to work with everyone face to face but we are doing the best we can to induct the future Weeden Heights PS students into our community.  This week they will be introduced to our art room via a video tour. 

Don’t miss the upcoming session if you have a child starting with us next year!

2020 Enrollments

I would like to remind families with children who will be beginning school in 2021, that we are still able to take enrollments.    If you have neighbours who have still not enrolled then I encourage you to have a chat to them about our amazing school.  All schools are struggling at the moment as we cannot conduct any school tours and this is where you do get the feel of a school. We are all so much more than our website.  The greatest feature of Weeden Heights PS is our students.  When prospective parents walk into our classrooms with your children working, this is where they can see their child learning from.  The students are all simply doing what they do and future parents respond well to the way our classes function.  With remote learning and isolation there are many parents in the community who have not enrolled in school yet.  If you can help us out we would greatly appreciate your support.

Enrollment forms are available on our website and can be returned to the office via email or mail. 

Professional Learning Day

Just a reminder that next Tuesday 28 July, staff will be involved in a professional learning.   This was pre-booked at the start of the year and would have been a curriculum day that was approved by School Council.  The staff will be working with our English consultant (in masks!), Lyn Watts, on the explicit teaching groups and assessment.   As we have moved into remote learning, the teachers will now still provide activities for the day to students through the Google Classroom.  Google Meets will occur between 8.30am and 9am so that the students know what will be expected of them during the day.  The remote classroom will not run as the teachers will be involved in the professional learning so parents will need to make alternative care arrangements for that day.  Thank you for your understanding. 

Exchanging take-home books or collecting more supplies

On Friday 31 July between 2.30 – 4pm, parents are able to bring their children up to school to collect more take home books or supplies.  Junior students were given ten books to read so they will require a change of all reading. Older students may have finished their novels.  Students can also ask their teacher for any supplies they may need as well (while touching base and saying hello or maybe even seeing a few friends in the yard). 

As with the last school open session, parents need to wait at the gate while social distancing.  Only the students may enter the school grounds. They can go straight to their own classroom to collect extra supplies or books and do not need to sign into the office while visiting.  This should really help keep their reading moving forward particularly when they are reading levelled books.  Older students can read novels from home but may need more variety so please come up and they can take what they need to get through the next fortnight.   I do plan to have the school open each fortnight for the exchange of reading material and anything else your child may need to them with support remote learning. 

Until next time……please stay safe, wear a mask and social distance. 

Ms Kylie Campbell

Principal

Futures are Bright at Weeden Heights!