Principals News 12 October 2021

Dear Parents and Carers

Welcome back to Term 4 – I trust that you all enjoyed the school holidays and got to spend some special times as a family. We welcomed 2 new students on Monday and hope that they and their families enjoy their time here at East Victoria Park Primary School (EVPPS).

Staffing Arrangements

I would like to update you all on some staff changes for Term 4

ECE 3

Miss Frere Harvey is on a well-earned Long Service Leave break for the first 4 weeks of term. She will be replaced by Mrs Kate Kay and Mrs Paige Crossland – two highly experienced early childhood teachers who have worked together very effectively in the past. We also welcome Mrs Asha Tratnik to the Early Childhood team. Mrs Tratnik will be working in ECE 1 and ECE3 on Fridays until the end of Week 4. Miss Sophie Brennan will replace Mrs Kay in her Science role for the first 4 weeks. We welcome back Mrs Crossland (one of our permanent Pre-Primary teachers currently on parental leave) and welcome Miss Brennan and Mrs Tratnik, to our staff for the first time at EVPPS.

Year 3 Room 11

Mr Jones returns from his secondment with the Department and we thank Mrs Lucia Di Crescenzo for the work that she did in Room, 11 on Monday and Tuesdays throughout Term 3.

Year 5 Room 8

Mr McDaid will be away for Weeks 1, 3, 7 and 9 completing a two specialist Secondary Mathematics courses with the Department. We are pleased to advise that Mrs Di Crescenzo will teach in Room 8 during those weeks

Year 4 Room 7

Miss Oag was married on the weekend and will be away for the first week of school. Mrs Kathie Cambray will be her replacement for the week. Miss Oag looked absolutely beautiful and it was a stunning wedding back in her home town of Adelaide. We offer our best wishes to Annabelle and Tom on a wonderful future together.

Year 5/6 Room 10

Mrs Rundle will be on Long Service Leave during Week 2 and Mr Russell Leslie will be teaching in Room 10.

Cleaner and Gardener Positions

We have a new cleaner starting with us for this term, Mrs Jackie Astley. Miss Lauren Archer has won a permanent position – congratulations Lauren – welcome on board to you both.

Mrs Michelle Stacey is replacing our gardener, Glen De La Motte who is on annual leave for the next 3 weeks.

Finally, Mrs Michelle Folland is on leave for Weeks 1 and 2 and will be replaced by Mr Tom Barrett.

Year 1 and 2 Playground Update

The draft plans and quote have arrived, and it looks amazing. The Grounds Committee will meet soon to go through the plans and hopefully works can commence later this term.

Sun Protection Policy

We have revised our Sun Protection policy and procedures. An update will be sent home with all students today. The policy will be uploaded to the website soon.

Attendance

It is a legal requirement for schools to monitor and keep accurate records of attendance as well as follow up unexplained absences. If your child is away from school, please notify the school as soon as possible and supply a reason for the absence. The School Education Act 1999 does not allow principals to give permission for families to take holidays during the school term. As students are required to attend school every day, time off for holidays is recorded as an absence.

We regularly monitor children’s attendance to ensure they are attending school regularly.  Regular school attendance for children is considered to be above 90%.

Research from the Western Australian Telethon Kids Institute shows that every day at school counts towards a student’s learning.  Students who attend more, generally do better at school and in life.

  • Missing half a day of school each week equates to one month of missed learning opportunities each year.
  • Missing half a day of school each week between Pre-primary and Year 10, equates to missing almost one full year of learning.

2022 Planning

Planning is under way for 2022. Having accurate student numbers allows us to plan effectively. If you know your child/ren will not be attending our school next year, can you please let us know? Also, if you know of anyone who resides in our local intake area who hasn’t already submitted their application to enrol, can you please encourage them to contact us or visit the school ASAP?

If you have any particular information that you would like to share with me when considering class placements for your child/ren next year can you please submit this in writing to me by Friday, 29 October? Please email me at kim.knowles@education.wa.edu.au or drop a letter into the office. Requests for particular teachers cannot be accommodated. Each circumstance/request I receive will be carefully considered. Please be assured that a lot of time and effort will be invested in getting our class placements the best we can get them, to suit the individual needs of all children.

Learning Focus for Term 4

I have been encouraging students to focus their best efforts this term to improve their Literacy and Numeracy skills and knowledge. I encourage students to read at home every night and to practise their basic maths skills, including times tables and basic addition and subtraction sums. Please discuss with your child/ren their particular learning goals they would like to pursue this term.

Finally, some important dates for the term:

Friday 22 October:Parent Assembly Rm 8
Friday 29 October:  P&C School Disco – please save the date.K to 2:  4.00-5.30pm and Year 3 to 6:  6-7.30pm. Further details will follow from the P&C.
Friday 5 November:Parent Assembly Rm 12
Thursday 18 November: Parent Assembly ECE 1 & 3 
Friday 19 November: School Development Day Please ensure that you have this date in your calendar – there will be no school for students on that day.
Monday 22 November – Friday 26 November: PP – Year 6 Swimming lessons
Monday 6 December and Tuesday 7 December: Belmont City College Drama FestivalYear 1 – 5 attending on either day
Thursday 9 December: Year 6 Graduation Ceremony 5.30pm (Year 6 & Year 5 only attend) 
Friday 10 December: Awards of Excellence & Community Concert 5.30pm – 7.30pm

Kind regards

Kim Knowles

Principal