Dear Parents and Carers,

It was so very exciting on Monday to have our first assembly together as a whole school outside in the school grounds next to Banksia Street.

How very fortunate that we have natural grass and established trees that provide comfort and shade while the students listen to proceedings. Outdoor assemblies are encouraged at this point in time rather than assemblies in the gymnasium.

Much of the assembly was to present certificates to our Year 6 students who gained awards for participation in various events held during remote learning. Congratulations to Tayah B and Heidi W for their Maths Talent Quest submissions. Well done to Olivia T, Millie F, Summer S, Eva L, Charli B, Tayah B, Ava G, Samara S and Lily W for their entries in the Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Competition.

(Please see one of the poems attached to the newsletter. We have such talented students.)

It has been wonderful observing the students’ excitement at reconnecting with their friends and playing happily in the playground. We should not underestimate (and I’m sure you don't) the significance of the past two years in their young lives and the crucial role that families (and school staff) have played in supporting our young people. As I have stated on numerous occasions, I am incredibly proud of our staff for their commitment and endeavours throughout this time. Likewise, I am proud of our Wattle Park families who have traversed the Remote Learning experience that, at times, was a very challenging one. Enjoy your renewed ‘freedom’ and be proud of yourselves and your children for your efforts during lockdown!

It certainly has been a busy time trying to reschedule school events with the current restrictions in mind with permitted density numbers. At this stage it looks like the swimming program will proceed at Presbyterian Ladies College for all students Foundation to Year 6 in the last two weeks of term. Stay tuned for notices and costings.

Planning is well under way for our Year 6 Graduation ceremony. Our Year 6 students have certainly had an end to primary school education that we would never have envisaged, I am so very pleased that the end of year activities symbolising their rite of passage can go ahead.

While our core business is and should always be student learning, the fabric and richness of a school comes from the many other elements on offer.

A special mention must be made of student drop off and pick up in Banksia Street over the past week. Thank you to the motorists who have correctly observed the parking regulations and driven sensibly. On Monday a Whitehorse Council bylaws officer was in attendance and she did not have to issue one fine to our school community. I know our neighbours have certainly appreciated the change in behaviour and it means our students are safer too.

Please put the date of Sunday 14^th November aside to attend for just a short time a school ‘Working Bee.’ The dates for our 2022 Foundation ‘Step Up to School’ sessions have been confirmed and it would be wonderful to have the school grounds looking neat and tidy to welcome them. The weeds are prolific in some areas of our gardens.

Enjoy the weekend everyone. It gives me great pleasure saying that, knowing that we have our freedoms back to participate in so many activities that we relinquished for such a long time.

Warm Regards



Gayle

Whilst studying for exams, VCE or tests, students in poor countries like Tanzania are forced to work under public lights to help them study because they’re unable to do it at home. Some are forced to spend the night on streets, huddled beneath street lamps studying
.

These lights will provide comfort whilst studying and we hope that they will prove useful to many families, who may be struggling with costs and fees.

During remote learning, we picked up the lights from the school office, with the option of working individually, or in small groups. The light came with instructions, and we worked together to build the light. It is solar powered, to reduce costs and is great for the environment!


Written by Catherine Wang, Olivia To, Elaine Zhou and Grace Nguyen




Year 6 Poetry Entry

In this society, we are not judged on how good of a person we are, 
But primarily based on our appearance, 
She has everything the world wants to see, I sit dry and empty, 
Her skin looks like it’s built from porcelain, with stitched in silk, 
Her hair flows with golden strands that wave perfectly and flow like milk, 
While I sit here, skin created by sand and straw refusing to smooth out, 
My hair strands are in battle with each other through matts and tangles, 

And I ask myself why do my eyes glow every shade of green when I see people,
Is it because I know under deep layers that I will never meet their standards, 
Hidden beneath the blues in my iris, is a lens with every hue of green ever seen, 

“How was your day?”

Each morning I wake up knowing that each day won’t change with time, 
For me time sits still, stays monochromatic 
My life is the same each day with no story to be told, 
Each morning I beat myself up trying to just move my feet, 
I go from extreme highs to extreme lows each day, 
In a constant battle with myself to see how to work around my head, 
my mind never sits still,
I look at myself in the mirror frustrated at my own reflection, 
As I finally am able to move my feet, I instantly pile my head with thick sheets of stress, 
Already tremoring about the day ahead of me, I struggle to stand still, 
Mindlessly wrapped in a hurricane of thoughts,
I tense up, I can feel myself slowly fade to stone  
I’m sinking, screaming, but nobody notices, nobody hears,
“Yeah-” I try to let my voice rip above the crowd, there's no point, 
People would rather listen to the sound of silence than hear what I have to say, 
“Yeah, well I-”I try to make my voice project 
above the stronger voices that surround me, 
I guess no one cared to hear the sounds that rip from my throat 
So I listen to the sweet silence in the distance, 

I've felt myself drown, even as I'm standing next to them, 
None of them would pull me out, 
They'd be too scared to touch the folds in my palms, 
If I cut open my skin, they could see all the bruises they left, 
And the scars there, they could never be undone, 
They'd never know that I’ve been playing dress ups with my emotions, 
And painting myself a mask for each day to smile through,
I feel rushes through my veins of pure panic, 
I can’t breathe, my own fear clogs my throat, 
I’m gasping for air, I need my lungs full again, 
Sounds of my heartbeat soak my ears, 

Food, comes time to eat, 
But I can't shove food down my throat,
In the back of my head are the meer words that I've been told, 
They are written in ink in the back of my mind 
And they can't just be washed away with soap and water, 
So I chose not to eat again, 
It’s a constant argue between my mind and heart, 

I’m now on my last string, It’s the last few hours of the day, 
That string is almost immediately cut and torn  
My head is stinging, it’s been filled with wrath
I can’t hold it in, can’t take another bullet for myself, it’s too much pain, 
I burst as I tear and rip apart my lungs, 
the build up in my mind is too much to take, 
I’m a monster, I caused another argument 
in the place that I was supposed to call home,
Slammed doors and screams fill my head, another skipped dinner
I barely ate today because of the words embroidered to my bones,
So I sit glaring at my food, yelling at my self to eat but I hold it in, I resist, 

For the last hour, I scroll mindless through my phone, people edited to perfection
They’ve had their whole bodies carved out to fit it to society’s standards, 
I expect myself to look like that, because that’s how I’ve grown, 
These standards were never born with me, but they were taught 

My arms feel weaker than the string I was holding together with, 
Arms they were drenched in shades of purple swelling up 
My ribs are fighting through the thin layer of skin that covers it, 

How was my day, my mind pulls me back to this reality
“ Yeah, it was good “ 
I guess no one could understand the concept of the fakeness in my words
Nobody would want to be bothered listening to my life
It sits still frozen in the time, that surrounds us 
The dress-ups and painted masks worked
It’s so easy to manipulate everyone into thinking I’m okay, 
I’m not ready for another day but I guess I have to be, 
My arms swell in colours of purple, 
My eyes feel like their bleeding, 
My head is heavy and in pain, 
I’m in pain, but they never knew. 
Yeah… that was my day 

Canteen is Re-Opening  Friday, 12^th November

We are excited to be able to offer the services of the Canteen again, starting Friday, 12^th November.

No over the counter sales at this time. 

Our Canteen cannot operate without the wonderful help from parent/grandparent volunteers.  Please note that according to DET guidelines, all volunteers must be fully vaccinated. Please sign up on the following link:

https://signup.com/go/LWrhTrH

Lunch orders to be placed on line via Felxischools only.

Flexischools is a well-established organisation allowing you to easily place all your canteen orders online at any time.  Orders must be placed no later than 8.30am on Mondays and Fridays.

Download the Flexischools app from the App store  https://apple.co/3q5KCUF or Google Play  https://bit.ly/3pREtuW) for details on how to set up your account. 

Once registered, you can start placing orders immediately. If you have any questions, please visit our FAQs  https://community.flexischools.com.au/s/).

We hope this step forward will support families with a more convenient and efficient process of placing canteen orders.

Mrs Charlotte Silve
Canteen Manager

• Second Hand Uniform Shop
  

• Rugby Tops for Year 5 students in 2022 and Rugby & Polo Tops for Year 6 students 2022

• Exit form