Hello Everyone,

In this week’s newsletter you’ll notice several pictures from last week which was National Science Week. There's more about this as you scroll down…

Also, our lambs, who have, at times, been roaming wild and free will be returning to Sam Stringer's farm at the end of this term. They will be picked up on Friday 16th September. We have the weekend of Saturday 10th September remaining vacant. If you'd like to look after Rosie and Wattle, please call the office to book in on Tel 9808 2165.

Unlike children, they come with instructions and food.

Our Students

Mathematics at WPPS - Year 5 

Continuing on with our series outlining the mathematical enrichment offered to our students  by our resident Mathematics Specialist, Mr James Feather, we examine what the Year 5's have been up to this week:

The students in Year 5 have recently been working on building their geometric reasoning skills (understanding of angles) and applying them in real-life situations. Throughout this mini-unit students were unpacking what is an angle (the turn between two arms/lines connected at a vertex), what they can look like, how do we measure them, using a protractor plus much more.

What an Angle!

During one particular session, the Year 5 students were demonstrating their knowledge of different types of angles and what these could look like, as well as measuring angles.

Rotary Speech Competition

Each year our Year 5 and 6's compete with each other to gain entry to the Rotary Speech Competition. We had a draw for first place this year so we sent two of our students. The final was held on Tuesday night (same night as School Council) at Mont Albert Primary School. Mr. Feather from Year 6B and our Assistant Principal, Ms Tan, attended with our entrants Alice M and Charlotte A.

On the 23rd August the finalists of the rotary competition, Alice M and Charlotte A (us) (we are in class 6B) arrived at Mont Albert primary school at 6:45 for a 7:00 start. There were 16 contestants in total and everyone had prepared such phenomenal speeches! Alice had written a speech based on the topic of ‘What is better, imagination or knowledge?’ Charlotte wrote a speech on the topic of, ‘What is the greatest thing ever invented?’ Everyone did astoundingly well but the overall winner was Kieran from Chatham Primary School, second place was Francisca also from Chatham Primary School and third prize went to Charlotte, (me) Wattle Park primary school. 

Charlotte A 6B and Alice M 6B 

Science week

A message from our Science Leader Ms Samantha Teng who also teaches 3B on Mondays and Tuesdays with Ms Anna Saaksjarvi:

Last week, Wattle Park Primary celebrated National Science Week with a range of science activities.The national theme was ‘Glass: More than meets the eye’, but Wattle Park students didn’t just explore glass, they immersed themselves in all things related to science! The students discussed the definition of science, looked at where science occurs in their daily lives and identified the different areas of science in this world. They predicted, questioned, constructed, observed and made conclusions during their science investigations. It was great to see students work across year levels with some year levels even offering a range of science workshops for different year groups! The week was a success! A big well done to all the curious students of this school.

Ms Teng

  

 

 

  

 

 

 

SAKGP

This week our Year 3/4  Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden students harvested a variety of fresh produce from our garden and cooked up the following gastronomic tour de force:

Silverbeet and Broccolini Pasta

Ingredients

Silverbeet – rock and chop

Broccolini – chop

1⁄2 onion – rock and chop

Parsley – rock and chop

Chili – remove the seeds – rock and chop

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 garlic clove – minced

1⁄4 cup grated parmesan cheese

What to do

1. Heat a frypan and add oil and fry off onion with 1 teaspoon of salt.
2. Add chilli and garlic and fry for one minute.
3. Add silverbeet and broccolini and fry for 2 minutes.
4. Add cooked pasta and stir through.
5. Add 1⁄4 cup grated parmesan cheese.

“I enjoyed stirring the herbs in the fry pan. Pasta is one of my favourite dishes. I haven’t had pasta with broccolini and silver beet before. I give it 8 out of 10.” Lleyton L

“I enjoyed the pasta dish. Nearly everyone ate it, it was so delicious. The vegetables made this dish, otherwise it would be plain.” Milli K

“One of my favourite things was grating the cheese. It looked really good. I really enjoyed this dish because the vegetables were freshly harvested from our garden”. Dotty M

  

 

Perky Panda Incursion

On Tuesday this week our Year F-3 had an incursion titled ‘Perky Panda' This incursion’s objective was focused upon enhancing students’ recognition and expression of emotions, resilience and identifying and managing emotional responses in a range of contexts. More information can be found HERE.

Students of the Week

Well done to all our recipients for actively displaying our school values. Any student not present at Assembly to receive their certificate will do so the following week.

FA Hong Minh Thai D

FB Kingsley Z

Year 1A Akshay S

Year 1B Britney L

Year 2A Lexi W

Year 2B Ethan L

Year 3A Amber S

Year 3B Violet C

Year 4A Oscar P

Year 4B Zoe W

Year 5A Andre & Charne K

Year 5B Olive B

Year 6A Ali A

Year 6B Oliver S

Our Staff

Continuing our series on getting to know our staff at Wattle Park Primary School we introduce Foundation A teacher and Team Leader, Ms Catherine Churchward. 

I am currently a Foundation teacher at WPPS and have taught here for 7 wonderful years.  I have also worked in Queensland, the UK and more recently Japan. Working internationally has helped me develop both professionally and personally, and also helped me to become more curious about the world around me.

I place an emphasis upon positive relationships between the teacher, child and family. I believe a culture of respect and care for all members of the school community has a significant impact on student engagement and wellbeing. I view children holistically and value emotional and social life as important as the academic. Student wellbeing is a driving force in my daily school life. 

Ms Churchward

Thank you!

Mulching delivery

Thank you to Paul Summerbell who, after just a phone call, dumped a glorious pile of chipped fruit tree mulch near the staff car park. Thank you Paul. It will be put to good use.

Mulching triumph!

Hot on the tail of being graced with mulch, last weekend Sarah Reutersward dived into the giant pile of the aforementioned chips with a wheelbarrow and a sense of iron armed determination and, violah! After a Saturday afternoon’s hard labour, this happened! Thank you Sarah!

Gardening Tour de Force!

Accompanied by the pinnacle of farming’s mechanical evolution, (no, not cattle herding drones)...the chainsaw, Julian Roberts cleared the way for the cleanup of the aspect of our school that faces Banksia St. Thank you Julian!

School Calendar (Go on, click on it...)

Lots of events happening this term. Events can be clicked and downloaded to your phone.

Face masks

Current advice from the Victorian Government recommends face masks are worn in indoor settings (except for close contacts, who must wear a mask indoors unless an exception applies). 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. A letter provided by the Department of Education and Training has been sent out this week via COMPASS to explain DET’s current position. 

Chickens

We need volunteers to help look after the lambs and the 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)

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 one more thing!

We are padlocking shut the gate to Warrigal Road after 9.15am every morning. It opens again around 3pm. We are doing this because we have a student who has a penchant for running out of the class and out of the school grounds. There are processes in place to ameliorate this issue but the safety issues are abundantly evident. Thanks for your understanding on this one.

Have a great weekend.

Steve Donohue

Principal

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Please scroll through to see all of our latest notices!




1. Second Hand Uniform Shop
2. Recording Compass Student Absences on Your  Mobile Device
3. School Council Dates for 2022
4. Banksia Street Parking - Please avoid driveways!
5. Volunteers Needed for First Aid Room
 


1. Second Hand Uniform Shop
Monday, 29nd August 8.30-9am

2. Recording Compass Student Absences On Your Mobile Device
To record that your child/ren will be absent form school on your mobile app is easy!
Click on the tab SMS called "Shortcuts", this will take you to the site to record your child's absence.
If no reason is given prior to 9.30am, an automated SMS message is sent alerting you to the fact your child has not been marked present at school.
If you receive this SMS, please enter the absence on Compass - via the app or on line or give the office a call.
As a Dept requirement a follow up phone called is placed to parents where no reason has been recorded in Compass, by mid morning.

3. School Council Dates for 2022

Tuesday, 18th October, 7pm
Tuesday, 13th December, 7pm

4. Car Parking, Banksia Street

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.

5. Volunteers Needed for First Aid Room

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

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Planning has began for 2023 classes. To help us in this process, if your child/children will not be returning to Wattle Park Primary School next year, please complete the Exit Form and sent it back to school as soon as possible.
Thank you.

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Support our local business!!!

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