Principal's report
Greetings Families and Friends of Moonee Ponds West PS,
I am continuing to get to know the students and families of the school. I am really impressed with the level of independence and authentic interest the students have in their learning. I have witnessed high level discussion around texts especially in our senior classes. Well done students for the effort you are giving to your learning and to the teachers for the planning which has enabled such deep learning. I look forward to continuing to view practice and provide feedback in return.
School Council Elections
At the close of nominations on Tuesday June 5th, we have four nominations for three positions in the Parent Category of School Council. Thus, we now move to an election. We are following the guidelines provided by DET and will be mailing the ballot papers to all families in the school community. As part of this process we are including a stamped self-addressed envelope for your convenience in returning your ballot.
All ballots MUST be received by 4pm on Tuesday June 19th. If you are choosing the return post option, please factor in the ‘snail mail’ time factor, to ensure that your vote reaches the school by 4pm on the closing date of the ballot. Of course, we will also have provision for families to return their ballot in person to the school’s General Office. Sandra Monaghan is the Returning Officer and would be available to answer any inquiries regarding the election or casting votes during the election period.
Further information about the Election is in a special section of this Newsletter.
Good luck to all who have nominated. I look forward to working with the new Council.
Fundraising Team
What a great night was had last Sat June 2nd at the 80’s Trivia Night. Being a past parent fundraiser, I was impressed with the organisation of this evening, and the wonderful selection of donations that we could all access via the ingenious online auction portal. I was unable to attend, but was still able to contribute via the online auction. I know that the music was great and that the party could have extended into the wee hours, as people were having such a great time. However, all good things must come to an end! My personal thanks to the Fundraising Team for their collective and personal efforts, and to the many families that came along and made the event such a success. We are yet to discover the figure raised, but we will confirm in the next weeks. Well done all!
Principals Leadership Conference
Over the past two days (Wednesday and Thursday) Barb and I have been at the Regional Leadership Conference in the city. Over the two days we were participants in various workshops and were able to hear some of the world’s great educators like Michael Fullan and Simon Breakspear. We also learnt from our peers, with specific schools sharing their practice around student learning. Opportunities for renewal ensures that educators don’t become complacent and stale. The Victorian Education System has a strong and consistent framework for school Improvement and the resources for teachers and leaders around this framework are exceptional.
At the Staff meeting on Tuesday June 5th, staff collaborated to develop a shared understanding of one of the frameworks key areas: Excellence in Teaching and Learning. There are three elements in this section of the framework and these elements are: Curriculum Planning and Assessment, Building Practice Excellence. The ‘how’ focusses on evidence-based high impact teaching strategies and evaluating impact on learning. It is exciting to develop these shared understandings with the team. In future newsletters I will provide the model and our shared understandings.
Well that’s about it from me. Until we meet in person next week, enjoy the days with your family and friend
Sincerely
Kerri Simpson
Principal (Acting)
Notices Home
Wednesday 6th June
- Excursion 2/3 Team
Friday 8th June
- Interview Notice - Rm's 2 and 7