Principal's Report

Wow! It is hard to believe that it’s half way through the year. It again has been an action-packed term with lots of great learning for our students and some fantastic events, from sports days to incursions and excursions. 

Terrific Kids Awards Term 2

It was great to welcome back Mr Norman McLennan from the Kiwanis Club of Waverley to present our Terrific Kids Awards on Monday. "Terrific" is an acronym for Thoughtful, Enthusiastic, Respectful, Responsible, Inclusive, Friendly, Inquisitive and Caring".

Congratulations to all our recipients:

Foundation - Lexi

Year 1 - Vihaan

Year 2 - Blossom

Year 3 - Rachel

Year 4 - Lucas

Year 5 - Dan

Year 6 – Elly

You can read the attributes that these students displayed to receive these awards on our page - Terrific Kids Term 2.

Writing Celebration

Last week all the students proudly took part in our whole school writing celebration for Term 2. The writing strategy focus was writing to persuade. As part of the sharing process students also practiced the skill of giving and receiving feedback to each other using a feedback slip. The Foundations enjoyed a special celebration of their writing with their parents and grandparents which was a joy to see.

The students are now reaping the benefits of the work that Andrea Hillbrick (Education Consultant) has completed over the past few years with our teachers, the quality of the students writing across the school is quite amazing. The confidence and enjoyment displayed by our ‘writers’ during our writing celebrations is tremendous.

Cross Country

Sheer fitness and resilience have seen Imogen, Lucas and Braedyn achieve their personal best in the Eastern Metropolitan Regional Cross-Country. Congratulations to these superstars!

Aerobics 

Congratulations to our Aerobics Team who competed last Saturday in the Pacific Open Aerobics Competition at Rowville. All teams did a spectacular job on stage culminating in medals for all the teams. They are now practicing hard for the upcoming Victorian Aerobics Championships on the weekend of the 22nd/23rd of July at Hampton Park. Go Syndal!!

Soccer

Congratulations to the SSPS Socceroos who headed off to the SDSSA Soccer Round Robin last Friday. From all accounts a great day was had by all, well done everyone.

Parent/Teacher Interviews

Thank you to the staff and parents who met last night to discuss their child’s first semester report. This time is always a great opportunity to touch base, especially for those parents who cannot always get to the school regularly.

Work Experience Students

Over the past two weeks we have had the welcomed assistance of students completing their work experience placements at our school. Iris from Mac Rob Girls High School, Brinda from Brentwood Secondary and Yolanda, Cassie, Napur and Jay from Mount Waverley Secondary have all been helping in the classrooms with a variety of tasks. A huge thank you to all.

School Policy Consultation and Updates

At Syndal South Primary School, we regularly review and update our policies and procedures to ensure they meet Department standards. These are available to view in our newsletter (see Policies section) and on our school website.

We are committed to continuous improvement in all our approaches and welcome feedback from families and members of our school community on policies, procedures, and practices. Policies currently under consultation and/or review can be found in the School Policy Consultation and Update section of the newsletter.

If you have any suggestions, comments, or questions, please contact our school office on 9802 5277 to be directed to the appropriate staff member.

Stay well this Winter

We have experienced a significant rise in flu/cold (Covid cases) for both students and staff this term. As you would be aware, the Covid Guidelines have changed with the passing of time, reflecting changing conditions. Current Covid Guidelines require staff to stay home for 5 days if they contract Covid. For students, the guidelines recommend a 5-day stay at home from school. Whilst it is not a requirement for students, we would strongly recommend that parents consider doing so to keep our school a healthy place to learn and work in. We ask that any student showing signs of illness do NOT attend school. As per department guidelines, if any student is presenting with compatible symptoms such as sore throat, cough, fever, or cold-like symptoms, a parent/guardian will be required to collect the student as soon as possible.

Syndal South Primary School always endeavours to cover class teacher absences with a Casual Relief Teacher. In recent weeks this has become increasingly difficult to do with higher number of staff absences due to illness and Casual Relief Teacher shortages across the state. We do our very best to replace absent teachers, but this is not always possible and alternate arrangements must be made.

To keep our school community well, parents, carers and students are encouraged to practice prevention measures, including:

• washing and sanitising hands regularly
• avoiding touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands
• covering nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing 
• staying home if unwell and consulting a general practitioner (GP) or Nurse-on-call as required
• staying up to date with flu and COVID-19 vaccinations.

Finally, those of you going away for the holidays I wish you safe travels and for everyone else I hope you enjoy a safe and restful break. I look forward to seeing everyone returning for the start of Term 3 on Monday 10th July.

Have a great holiday break.

Helen