Principal Message

Welcome to this edition

Again another wonderful fortnight at TSPS.  I am thoroughly enjoying my visits to the various learning spaces aorund the school. In the past fortnight I have engaged with Yr. 5&6 students who have been planning, developing and drafting expositions. I am pleased by the students' use of technical language and structure of arguments and points of view. I have spent time with students in Yr.1 &2 communities as they practise comprehensions skills as part of their reading and as they deconstruct and reconstruct shared writing pieces exploring both the authorial and secretarial aspects of great writing. I love walking through the Prep Discovery Play areas as they make sense of their world, through hands on experiences, broadening their vocabulary and language skills. Writing is a key focus in our Annual Implementation Plan and teachers too and meeting weekly to plan and develop effective, integrated literacy learning for all students. I am also impressed by professional training foci this term for our staff. Every Monday and Tuesday we have opportunities for teachers to develop their craft (another AIP goal) through peer and train the trainer models. Dr. Jeni Wilson, our critical friend from University of Melbourne is with us this week to support the continued work we have undertaken in developing the inquiry process and supporting student voice and advocacy in their learning. (Yet another AIP goal).  I thank Joel Riddle for overseeing the Professional Learning Program at TSPS and thank the colleagues who lead the learning and  all teachers who are committed to improving their craft  so that all students can experience success and individual potential. 

As always there are a number of  significant events  taking place in the next few weeks.  This Friday we acknowledge and celebrate our wonderful mothers with a hearty breakfast. I love meeting and greeting our mums and know the children love spoiling them too and spending that time together. Thank you for all you do! I wish all our TSPS mothers, a very Happy Mother's Day. And just for a bit of fun you may like to hit this link for a tribute to the day in the life of a mum.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXgoJ0f5EsQ&index=1&list=RDo6P2w5GkXmU

National Assessment Program for Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) takes place May 15,16,17 for our students in Year 3 and 5. As parents you can help your child remain calm about the process by  reassuring them that the tests are just one part of their school program, and by reminding them on the day to simply try their best. Getting a good night's sleep the night before can also help them keep calm. Teachers will ensure students are familiar with the types of questions in the tests and will provide appropriate support and guidance.

Education Week is coming! May 20-27. The theme this year is "Celebrate the ARTS".  Please make sure you take a look at the Timetable of Activities scheduled  throughout the week and I invite you to attend one or a few of the day time activities as fits your day. A reminder also about our Family Evening event on Wed 23 May where a bevy  of great hands-on activities and showcases have been organised. Join us for part or all of this evening,  between from 5-7pm (in the gym). Bring the whole family. Also on Wednesday May 23, all students are invited  to wear casual clothes to school (gold coin donation) to the theme of "Express Yourself". Students can dress in bright colors, cultural wear, quirky dress, in fact in anyway that makes a statement about who they are. The proceeds from this day will support the ARTS program at TSPS. Thanks go to  Genn Collier and Jen Stirk for their leadership of this event. I am pleased that our Yr 1/ 2 cohort is heading to the National Gallery of Victoria during Education Week.  Congratulations to the 80 families who have committed to our school's involvement in Wakakirri. The work begins in earnest with practices, rehearsals, choreography design, all beginning this week. Thank you to the parents who have offered to help too. Again a huge thanks to Jen, Genn and Jacinta, in particular, for their leadership of this event.  Incorporating the ARTS as part of  the development of the whole child is alive and well at TSPS.

A word about iPads. 

A very important reminder to all families of the following:

a) If your child has an iPad at home it should be coming to school every day to support the child’s learning. Whilst not every moment of learning is spent on the iPad (as our students do still do pen and paper and group work), there are integral times in the daily learning schedule where the iPad is vital. It is also a great way to capture student learning and activity so that discussions can happen at home and home learning can reinforce learning through school promoted apps.  The school is not in a position to provide every student with an iPad and as a BYOD school (Bring Your Own Device), having the iPad at school is very important.

b) A caution about the care and safety of the iPad. As much as the school puts in place safety measures regarding the care and safety of iPads, the school does not take responsibility for loss or damage. Occasionally, when devices are misplaced our technician, Lachlan and teachers conduct thorough searches to locate the device. Please refer to our School’s BYOD policy for further information but it is clearly stated that

“Students and staff are solely responsible for the care of devices they choose to bring to school. TSPS will not be held responsible (either financially or legally) for lost, stolen or damaged devices.

c) Are you aware of what may be on your child’s iPad? Has there been syncing with other devices at home? Are you sharing one account? Children can innocently and unintentionally share what they have access to on devices. Please be vigilant.  Lachlan informs me that he is able to assist in setting up a “Family Account” that offers better safeguard against inadvertent transfer of data between devices. If you would like support with this, please see Lachlan.

School Council

A number of our school councilors have undertaken training for both Governance and Finance (later in May). I thank them for their commitment to TSPS as they give of their time voluntarily to be part of our School Council. School Council meetings can be both open and closed. Shortly, I will post Standing Orders on our website as to the norms under which the council will operate. There is information available there as to expectations of and actions for members of our community outside of council who wish to attend meetings. School Council dates for the remainder of the year are as follows:

Term 2: May 16, June 20

Term 3: July 25, Aug 15, Sept 19

Term 4: Oct 17,  Nov 14, Dec 5 (Network Dinner only for presiding council members).

Our Amazing Students

Congratulations to Asheriya Charan, one of our very talented Year 6 students in Turquoise, who is doing extremely well in Tennis. On April 24, she participated in the Western Metropolitan Regional Tennis Championships. She has included and article about her recent achievements in this bulletin and I know that we all wish her well in her endeavours.

Yours in Education 

Linda Danese (Principal)