Hello Everyone,

Welcome to Term 3!

We also welcome back Ms Sylwia Michalska (Ms M) who has returned to her Performing Arts/Arts role after 6 months in Poland. Thank you to Ms Sarah Nolan, who filled in for Ms M during this time and has now returned to our small and highly valued pool of local Classroom Replacement Teachers (CRTs).

Calendar

Lots of events happening this term including School Camps, Hooptime and various Excursions. Please check the calendar on our school’s  website to keep up to date. Events can be clicked and downloaded to your phone - a marvellous way to make sure you are not startled by the words “Mum, Dad, I need to get ready for camp this morning” (!)

Our Staff

Ms Skantzos has been at Wattle Park Primary since 2009 and is valued member of our staff:

Hello Wattle Park Families!

Some of you may already recognise me as this will be my 13th year at our wonderful school.

During my time here I have taught in almost every year level and seen so many positive additions to our school environment. I am currently in Year One and have enjoyed a great start to the year, especially after the past two disrupted years. I look forward to this semester being full of fun, learning, growth and supporting the children. I also help run SRC so it has been great getting to know students from all year levels who are passionate about representing the views of their peers and encouraging student voice. Please feel free to reach out and say ‘Hi!’ as you pass by; I love meeting the school community.

COVID Protocol Update

School Operations Guide (Number 33!) came out on 8th  July. Here are the main points:

Vaccination requirements

The School Operations Guide now includes the changes to vaccination requirements for mainstream schools that came into effect from 11:59pm Friday 24 June, which mean there are no longer any mandatory vaccination requirements for staff or visitors working or attending mainstream schools.

Rapid Antigen Tests

The Victorian Government is providing up to three further deliveries of Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) in Term 3 and again in Term 4 to schools. These will  be distributed by schools for use by staff and students who are symptomatic or who are household contacts. All schools will receive the first delivery of Term 3 RATs by the end of week 3. 

Face Masks

Current advice from Victorian Government strongly recommends face masks are worn in indoor settings (except for close contacts, who must wear a mask indoors unless an exception applies). You must also let the school know if your child is a close contact. Students who are close contacts and want to attend should still take 5 RATs over 7 days and wear a face mask whilst indoors if they are aged 8 years or over.

Students aged 8 years and above must wear a face mask (unless an exception applies) when travelling on public transport to extra-curricular and non-classroom based activities, such as camps, excursions and sport.  

Lambs

As you are probably already abundantly aware, we now have two lambs onsite. Thanks to Darcy, Ted and their Dad, Sam, we now have ‘Wattle’ (the smaller one) and ‘Rosie’ (the bigger one). 

Having animals onsite for the students to look after creates opportunities for learning that are unsurpassed by anything that can be done without a nervous system. These include:

Socially: Animals require care. What will happen if l don’t care for them? 

Mathematically: How much do l need to feed them, how frequently and why?

Literally: What do these instructions say and can l improve them? 

HERE is an article regarding pets, (specifically dogs),  from the New York Times, that explores this concept further.

Chickens

However, the students are not always onsite so we need volunteers to help look after the lambs and the chickens. 

Thank you to the following families who volunteered over the last holidays to look after our chickens:

Sheree Spiteri, a parent of one of our Foundation students, is currently organising a weekend roster for our school chickens in her role as Chicken Care Coordinator and she is now seeking volunteers for the weekends throughout Term 3. Everyone is welcome to volunteer and support is available if required.

Responsibilities:

• Let the chickens out in the morning and bring them in late afternoon
• Check for eggs
• Empty water containers and refill with fresh water
• Check food and grit containers and ensure there are adequate amounts of food for our 8 fabulous ladies
• Clear any chicken droppings/feathers from the laying boxes and water/food/grit containers
• Replenish hay in the laying boxes 

The chickens are such an important part of the WPPS community and the SAKGP. Ensuring they are cared for outside of school hours is essential to their health and wellbeing…and egg laying! If you are interested, please contact Sheree at: shereespiteri85@gmail.com  and advise of the following:

• Name
• Email address
• Mobile number
• Availability (even one weekend will help)

Parent Teacher Interviews

Parent/Teacher Meetings occur in Term 1 and Term 3. Written reports are provided in Term 2 and Term 4. This term we have Parent/Teacher meetings on:

Tues 26.7 from  3.50 - 7.30pm

Wed 27.7 from 3.50 - 4.50pm Parent/Teacher Meetings

PT meetings are an opportunity for you to discuss your child/ren/s progress with their teacher/s and to work together to achieve the best outcome for your child/ren academically. These will go live for booking early next week.

Department of Education and Training Policy developments

I’m mentioning these because they are current developments and it is good to be informed. We have had no such incidents! (Although it is important for both parents and staff to know there are acceptable and unacceptable behaviours and there are actions we can take if someone goes the full banana).

School Community Safety Order Scheme

The Department of Education and Training has strengthened the legal protections available to all Victorian schools in response to unacceptable behaviour from parents, carers and other adults in the school community by introducing the School Community Safety Order Scheme.

The Scheme empowers authorised persons, including principals, to issue School Community Safety Orders to prohibit or limit unacceptable or unreasonable behaviour. You can find this policy HERE.  

Respectful Behaviours within the School Community Policy

The Scheme is just one part of the Department’s initiatives to address work-related violence in schools. The Department’s Respectful Behaviours within the School Community Policy on the the Department of Education and Training’s website communicates the shared responsibility staff, parents and other adults have in behaving respectfully.  

I’ve uploaded these policies to our school website HERE

2023 Enrolments

2023 school planning has commenced. We are having quite a few families who are asking to enrol from outside our zone due to various factors - all of which are inherently a very positive reflection on WPPS!  So, if you have a child/children due to commence school in 2023 please complete a school enrolment and forward to the school office along with a copy of their Birth Certificate & Vaccination Certificate ASAP. A  2023 School Enrolment form is available HERE on the WPPS website or the school office.

 And thank you…

Thank you to Larissa King who is responsible for replanting our ANZAC pathway with rosemary plants. Such attention to detail is something we rarely get time for given the velocity of our work so thank you Larissa, It’s an elegant and respectful addition.

Have a great weekend everyone

Steve Donohue

Principal

Along with the student enrolment form, you must also send:

• A copy of your child’s birth certificate/passport
• Your child's immunisation history
• Any visas (if applicable)

Once received, you will receive a confirmation email at our earliest convenience.

If you know of other families yet to enrol, please encourage them to do so.

If you have any questions relating to the enrolment process, please email or call the office (9808 2165).


We look forward to seeing you in 2023.

Kind regards,

Steve Donohue
Principal

2. School Council Dates for 2022

Tuesday, 26th July, 7pm
Tuesday, 23rd August, 7pm
Tuesday, 18th October, 7pm
Tuesday, 13th December, 7pm

Parents, out of courtesy to our neighbours please do not park across their driveways in Banksia Street, when dropping off or picking up your children. Whitehorse Traffic Officers will be patrolling during these times.

We operate a first aid room at Wattle Park Primary school. In order to keep our First Aid Room clean and tidy, we require parent volunteers to assist us each Friday. We'd love 40 families to help - so you only have to help once a year!
For only around 15 minutes we appreciate you checking the area, changing the sheets, and returned washed sheets the following Monday. 

How to assist

• Click on the link below, choose the date you can assist, and sign up.
• You will not require an account or to keep a password. 
• If you would prefer not to use your email address, please email the school and your details can be entered manually to include you on the roster. 
• To assist with tidying the First Aid room please sign up here: 

https://signup.com/go/bpUzddO