Hello Everyone,

As many of you may have seen in the news this week, the Victorian Government has mandated the inclusion of explicitly instructed phonics. It comes as no surprise to WPPS that students need to be taught phonics directly and explicitly.

How else do you know what phonics are?!

WPPS has two Literacy Leaders. Ms Sam Kwong and Ms Anna Saaksjarvi. So you are fully aware of how WPPS approaches literacy, I thought it would be best you hear from them on this subject.

Here we have further information from Ms. Saaksjarvi:

The decision by the Victorian Government to mandate the inclusion of explicitly instructed phonics is 2025 is noted HERE. This decision is based upon the Science of Reading supported by the Australian Education Research Organisation. The conclusion of this research noted:

‘The 5 specific reading sub-skills of phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension should be taught explicitly and systematically so all children become capable readers.’

Wattle Park PS recognised the need for explicit, direct instruction (EDI) several years ago and as a result have been gradually embedding this across our spelling and writing program. You may recognise this as ‘old school’ instruction of how to write and how to spell.

At Wattle Park Primary we are committed to evidence-based instruction and have implementing the following certified explicit instruction based programs:

Foundation to  Year 2 Sounds-Write program 

Globally recognised as the gold standard for not only phonics, but also over all literacy development. It is also the chosen program by many speech pathologists world-wide. The following links outline the program and show you examples of lessons:

https://sounds-write.co.uk/what-is-sounds-write/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJ_W2ixU7TA&list=PLetiKvWftA5uioxlAdiuINBB2Svk7GoVR

If you would like learn more and assist your child:

https://sounds-write.co.uk/support-for-parents-and-carers/

Year 3 to  6 Spelling Mastery Program

This is also a certified explicit direct instruction model that is evidence-based and follows the understandings of the Science of Reading. The following links outline the program and show you examples of lessons:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrRP-jiiTSE

https://www.goodtogreatschools.org.au/spellingmasteryguide/

Wattle Park Primary School is committed to following the latest evidence-based and scientifically backed approaches to learning. We look forward to taking you all on our journey with us! 

Anna Saaksjarvi

Next week - last  day of term Friday  28.6 

    SRC Warm Winter Dress up Day/Gold Coin Royal Children’s Hospital
               No slippers - school shoes or sneakers only

     8.15 - 10.15am Free coffee van supplied by Team Kids

     8.30 - 9.15am Uniform shop open in gym   

     9.15 Assembly

     11.40 Lunch

     2.00 Snack

     2.15 Class

     2.30 Dismissal

Semester 1 Reports
Reports go live on Friday 28.06 at 4pm on Compass.

If you would like a hard copy of your child’s report please email your classroom teacher and your child will be given one on Friday 28.06.

Go HERE for how to access your child’s report on Compass.

New Mathematics Victorian Curriculum 2.0
The Victorian Government has recently changed the F-10 school Mathematics curriculum to raise Australian learning outcomes to meet higher international standards.

The former Mathematics curriculum represented students’ progress with a dot in each one of three strands of Mathematics:

• Number & Algebra
• Measurement & Geometry 
• Statistics and Probability

This new curriculum breaks this up into 6 strands and only requires one dot to represent all of a students’ Mathematics progress:

In the interests of keeping parents and guardians informed, WPPS has decided to represent each of these six strands, mark each one, and give a dot to indicate overall progress. Therefore our reports look like this:

As the new curriculum is more challenging it may mean your child achieves a lower level this year than they did last year. It is unlikely your child’s achievements in Mathematics have regressed - rather, the curriculum targets have been raised. We look forward to working in partnership with you to further educate our students. 

Our Students
Students of the week

No students of the week due to Year 56 Winter Gala Day

Friday 28.06 at 9.15am Final Assembly for the term 

Foundation Mathematics
In Foundation, students classify and sort objects into sets and form simple correspondences between them. They decide when two sets are of equal size, or one is smaller or bigger than another. They develop an understanding of the concepts of number:

Connecting number names, numerals and quantities, including zero, initially up to 10 and then beyond.

Year 6 Solar Buddy Program

Year 6 are fundraising money for the SolarBuddy program to build solar lights to help children living in extreme energy poverty.

SolarBuddy is an Australian charity uniting a global community to illuminate the futures of all children. One of the biggest obstacles we face is extreme energy poverty. It is a complex challenge, impacting the health and well-being, educational outcomes, and economic stability of the communities experiencing it as well as our environment. Despite this, we are motivated by big challenges and the impact we can make by gifting solar lights to children who need them.

All students will receive their orders at lunchtime on Thursday 27th June.

Families will place their orders online at Humanitix here:  

https://events.humanitix.com/sausage-sizzle-fund-raiser

You will have until Monday 24th June to submit your orders.”

ICAS
We are delighted to inform you that  we will be participating in the world-renowned ICAS competition this year across Years 4 – 6.  

What is ICAS?  
ICAS (International Competitions and Assessments for Schools) is an online academic competition that is designed to assess students’ higher order thinking and problem-solving skills in English, Mathematics, Science, Writing, Spelling and Digital Technologies.  

Each assessment celebrates students’ accomplishments by providing opportunities for recognition and development. Every student who participates will receive a printed certificate and an online results report. Top performers will be eligible for medals.  

We encourage you to consider entering your child (Year 4-6 only) into ICAS this year.   

How to participate in ICAS  
If you wish for your child to participate in ICAS this year, please:  

1. Read about ICAS subjects and prices here.
2. Read the terms and conditions here.
3. Go to Parent Portal to purchase tests here.
4. Enter our school’s access code –  IOQ829  
5. Enter your child’s details, select the tests you would like to purchase, then proceed to   payment.  

Please note that the ICAS tests shown for selection are at the school’s discretion.   

After payment is made via the Parent Payment System, you will receive an order confirmation email. Please keep this for your records.  

ICAS Results and Certificates 
We will notify you of the date(s) that we run ICAS at the school and when your child’s ICAS results are ready. You will have until Monday 29th July to make an order, and your child will be sitting the test/s in August. Once we have received your child’s ICAS certificate, we will send it home with your child. The back of the certificate shows ICAS results and the login details, ‘TAP ID and Pin’, that you and your child need to enter on the Results Portal.  

Our Staff

Continuing getting to know our staff at WPPS, we get to know Ms Duong who teaches 4B.

As we continue to get to know our staff at WPPS I’d like to introduce our Year 1B Teacher - Kim Duong.

Hi Wattle Park Families, 

It is such a delight to be part of the WPPS Community since 2016. During my many years here, I have spent a lot of time teaching Year One and am currently teaching Year Four. I have been lucky to watch many cohorts of students grow throughout the years and progress all the way to graduation. 

 Student wellbeing is something I prioritise. Creating an inclusive and fun environment for students, while also celebrating and embracing diversity are things I hold most important. I take time to form respectful relationships with my students and model this behaviour in my classroom and on the playground. 

 I hope to see you around :)

Kim

Bookclub
A message from our magnificent book club organiser Jill H who has done a mighty job with Bookclub and is now going to hand over the reigns:

Hello everyone,

Scholastic Book Club happens at the start of each term.

Firstly, you’ll need to stamp the catalogues with the deadline date. (approx. 1hr)

Once the orders are placed online, you will then process the orders on the deadline date.

You will receive an email from Scholastics Book Club letting you know your orders have been dispatched. When the orders have been delivered to the school, the office will email or contact you.

Finally, is the sorting of the orders, this in the fun part. (approx. 1 1/2hrs)

If you are interested in perhaps taking over this role, please contact the office to obtain my details;

Phone: 98082165 Email: wattle.park.ps@education.vic.gov.au

Uniform Shop
New Uniforms
The Uniform Shop for new uniforms is located off site.

Please click HERE for the location and price list for all our new uniforms.

Uniform orders can be delivered to the school office. 

School Bags and School Beanies
Available from the school office

Second Hand Uniform Shop
Located in the school gymnasium 
Cash only

Last Friday of every month - next opening time
Friday 28th June 8.30 - 9.15am

• Donations of second hand uniforms are welcome. 
• Clothing must be washed and in very good condition. 
• Please bring donations to the school office.
• Thank you for supporting this initiative!

Assembly

9.15am  Fridays

Chooks
Thank you to Ms. Woodhouse and Ms Duong for incorporating the assistance of Team Kids and the Cameron Close residents to populate our feeding schedule so we do not have to appeal so desperately to our school families to attend to the ladies on the weekends.

Click here to visit the Volunteer SignUp page.

Click here to read more about what is required for Chicken Care

Volunteers course

If you’d like to volunteer in 2024, please obtain a Working with Children’s Check and complete our Volunteers course.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Steve Donohue

Principal

Wattle Park Primary School

1. Chess Club Tournament Summary
2. Update Emergency Contact Information
3. School photos: 20% Limited time discount offer
Second Hands Uniform Dates
4. Second Hand Uniform Shop Dates
5. School Beanies
6. CSEF
7. Volunteers Needed for the First Aid Room
8. Late Students

1. Chess Club Tournament Summary

"A Chess Victoria Zonal Inter-school Tournament was held on Tuesday 18 June 2024, and Wattle Park Primary ranked second amongst the 14 Schools that participated (based on taking the top 4 students of each school).

Wattle Park chess players continue to be very adept and will progress to the state championships later in the year (having now qualified).

A total of ~67 players competed and each one competed in a total of 7 rounds with progressively matched difficulty, i.e. players were paired with the stronger opponents as they won, and difficulty levels were reduced in case of losses. 0.5 points are awarded in the case of a draw.

Roger T and Sridatta X had exceptional performances winning 5/7 games. We look forward to more students supporting the team by attending the interschool tournament next term.

2. Updating Emergency Contact information - Imperative!!
All parents and guardians: If you have not yet updated your emergency contact information, please do so immediately. It is imperative for the school to have the most current contact details for the safty and well-being of your child. Thank you for your prompt attention to this important matter.

3. School photos: 20% Limited time discount offer
A message from Advancedlife:
20% Discount on Sports & Co-Curricular Group Photos available until 27/06/2024

Dear Parents,

These school sports and co-curricular groups were photographed on 14/03/2024:

You can now view and purchase the group images listed above and if you place your order before 27/06/2024 you will get a 20% early order discount. Just click on the link below. Please note the discount will be automatically applied at checkout.

Images can also be viewed by visiting www.advancedlife.com.au entering the code: Q32 WP2 PAR and clicking on “Group Photos”

Important

• Sports and co-curricular group photos can only be purchased online, PLEASE DO NOT return payment to your school
• If your child's group or team is scheduled to be photographed at a later date, you will receive an additional email notification when the images are ready to be ordered
• Photos will be returned to your school for distribution approximately six weeks after the discounted early order period has closed
• Past years' photographs including sports, co-curricular and representative groups are also available at your school's advancedorder and your child's advancedyou photo sites

advancedlife would like to express our appreciation to Wattle Park Primary School for placing your trust in us. Please remember we offer a 100% money-back guarantee on our products to ensure your peace of mind. We would also love to receive your feedback or resolve any issues you may experience, to ensure your satisfaction. If you have any questions, comments or feedback relating to your advancedlife experience, please contact us at www.advancedlife.com.au/contact

Second Hand uniform shop will be in the school gymnasium on:

• Friday, 28th June 8.30 - 9.15am 

• And then - last Friday of every month
                                                 

5. School Beanies

If you are the holder of a Govt Concession Card or Health Care Card, you are eligible for Government assistance called CSEF, (Camps, Sports, Excursions Fund).

This payment of $150 is for any school activity including camps.

Please fill out the form HERE along with a copy of your concession card, and hand into the office.

This procedure should also be followed for eligible existing families, for 2024 payment.

If you have  any enquiries, please contact the office on 9808 2165.

7. Volunteer Needed for the First Aid Room
Much appriciated if any one can help us clean the sheets in First Aid Room. Your help can make the First Aid room a more safer and cleaner enviroments.We have had no one since mid last term. Please sign up HERE.

8. Late Students
All late students MUST report to office before heading to class, to receive a late slip.  Otherwise, your child will be reported as absent and parents will receive an sms notification that their child in an unexplained absence.

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