Principal's report

Some Observations from the Interim Principal

Although my Assistant Principal, Trish Viscusa and I have only been at MPW since Tuesday this week, some of the characteristics that make yours such an excellent school have already been very apparent to us.

We were struck firstly (and continue to be) by the personal qualities we have observed in the children. They are generally articulate, confident, polite and co-operative with their teachers as well as each other. We have also been extremely impressed with the manner in which the children engage in their learning. The older children in the school particularly demonstrate independence, interdependence and collaboration in their approach to their learning

… and the apples have not fallen far from the trees! In just four days we have met, received emails from and had telephone conversations with so many MPW parents who are also articulate, friendly, welcoming etc, just as the children are. Thank you very much for that.

The instrumental music program has impressed us enormously. The Japanese program and beautiful, authentic and calm classroom are also great assets to the school and its students.

When we have walked around the school and through classrooms, we have been very impressed with the teaching staff. We have seen teachers actively engaged with the students and their learning, providing instruction, guidance and support at the point of learning.

The Education Support staff who assist teachers and children have very positive relationships with the students and provide valuable support in classrooms, particularly to students who have complex needs.

I have worked particularly closely with the office staff this week and can’t even begin to describe the skills and dedication that I have seen. My particular thanks to Business Manager Sandra Monaghan who has very quickly become my new ‘right hand’, welcoming me to the school and explaining the MPW processes and procedures.

Year 3 & 4 Camp

Approximately 180 year 3 & 4 children will be off to Campaspee on Monday morning for the annual three-day camp. The preparations and organisation required to take 180 children away for three days are enormous, as are all of the emergency and risk management procedures that are required to ensure that all children and staff have a safe as well as happy and fun few days. Thank you very much to the staff and families for all of their effort in preparing the children for camp.

David Hornsby Presentation

On Wednesday evening this week, well-known literacy consultant David Hornsby presented to parents and staff about various approaches to the teaching of English generally and to spelling in particular.

Thank you very much to all of the staff and parents who attended the session and to those who have already provided their written feedback. Special thanks to the MPW English Professional Learning Team for organising the presentation for the community.

NAPLAN

On May 15, 16 & 17 Year 3 and Year 5 students in all primary schools in Australia will be participating in the annual National Assessment Program for Literacy and Numeracy tests. The areas tested are Language Conventions (Spelling, Grammar & Punctuation), Persuasive or Narrative Writing, Reading Comprehension and Mathematics. The results of the tests provide valuable information for parent/carers and teachers about individual children’s performance in Literacy and Numeracy. Later in the year, parents will receive a detailed report describing their own child’s particular skills in the areas that have been tested by NAPLAN. The report will also illustrate how each child has performed in relation to national benchmark standards. Year 5 parents will have the benefit of seeing how much progress their child has made since he/she completed the Year 3 NAPLAN tests. Additional information has been provided for parents of Year 3 and Year 5 students.

Moira Findlay

Notices Home

Tuesday 1st May

Letter from Interim Principal - Whole School

Wednesday 2nd May

Camp Reminder - Years 3/4
Letter re NAPLAN - Years 3 and 5

Friday 4th May

Inquiry Unit Letter - One/Two team