TERM 4 PARENT AND FRIENDS BAKERY LUNCH DAYS - All Term 4 dates are now open for ordering via Compass Canteen.

• Thursday 9th December (Orders closing on 6th December, 3:00pm)

2021 TERM DATES

• Term 4: 4th October - 17th December (1:30pm finish)

2022 TERM DATES

• Term 1: 28th January (Students start 31 January) - 8th April (2:30pm finish)
• Term 2: 26th April - 24th June (2:30pm finish)
• Term 3: 11th July - 16th September (2:30pm finish)
• Term 4: 3rd October - 20th December (1:30pm finish)

2022 SCHOOL CAMP DATES

• Year 3: Arrabri Lodge Camp - Monday 8th August to Wednesday 10th August
• Year 4: Anglesea Recreation Camp - Wednesday 18th May to Friday 20th May
• Year 5: Lady Northcote Recreation Camp - Tuesday 4th October to Friday 7th October
• Year 6: Canberra Camp - Monday 6th June to Friday 10th June

FOUNDATION INFORMATION NIGHT A final reminder that an Information Night for families of enrolled Foundation students for 2022 will be held in the gymnasium tonight from 6.30pm. We have 80 students enrolled for next year with four classes of 20 students. Our Foundation Team for 2022 is Kelsey Mentiplay (Team Leader), Amanda Elliott (Transition Coordinator), Ellen Maxwell and Bessie Grant.

SWIMMING AND DANCE PROGRAM It will be an exciting week for our students next week, with all grades attending a Water Safety Program at the Latrobe University Sports facility. In addition, we will also continue the last three weeks of dance lessons with STOMP (postponed due to Lockdown) and a number of our Grade 6 students will participate in interschool sports finals. With Foundation 2022 Classroom sessions, a Grade 4 Werribee Zoo excursion and some team planning for next year with Maths Consultant Michael Ymer, the timetable for next week has been a logistical nightmare. Thank goodness the guru of timetables, Gillian Nicholls, has been able to weave her magic!!

BUILDING PROJECT I am pleased to announce that our Master Plan has been finalised and approved by the Victorian School Building Authority (VSBA) and School Council and we are now at the Schematic Design stage.

Our $6.954 million upgrade project will see the Art and Japanese rooms replaced by two double-story buildings. These will house eight Grade 2 and 3 classes into the future. The southern classrooms (which currently house Administration, the First Aid Room and staffroom, along with five classrooms) will also be demolished and replaced with an open, passive play space, which will link to the current courtyard and Grade 2 playground.

There will be a new centrally located Administration Building housing reception, a general office, Principal, Assistant Principal and Business Manager offices, as well as a staffroom, first aid and teacher resource areas and various meeting and conference rooms. This will be built in the area currently occupied by the vegie garden and Grade 3 and 4 relocatables.

The project will also see the relocation of two of our three Department-provided relocatables. These will be supplemented with a connecting deck and toilet facilities, and enhanced with a refurbishment of those relocatables.

It is anticipated works will start late next year. These will be navigated with plenty of communication and advice and a sensible ‘decanting’ process worked out by the architects, the VSBA and the school. The project’s completion date is forecast for Q4, 2023.

More on that soon, with plenty to digest this week. It is certainly an exciting time for our school!

UPDATED COVID ADVICE Keeping up to date with the latest Department of Health and Department Of Education and Training advice is a seemingly full time occupation just now, and we are still awaiting a promised update to the latest Operational Guidelines. I will advise of these changes and the impact on our school via Compass as soon as I can. Nonetheless, we are making a few subtle changes as of next week. In the first instance, whilst the daily drop off times will continue to be from 8.45am until 9.15am, gates will only be ‘manned’ until 9.00am. They will continue to be locked at 9.15am and the departure routine will continue as is. Foundation to Grade 2 assemblies will commence on Friday afternoons in the gymnasium from 3.00pm until 3.20pm, with parents of award recipients invited (subject to having the appropriate vaccination status). Grade 3 to 6 assemblies will recommence next Monday at 9am until 9.30am with the same arrangements.

GRADE 6 GRADUATION As mentioned in a Compass post a few weeks back, we are committed to holding part of the 2021 Graduation ceremony onsite at the advertised time of 9.15am until 11am on Thursday, December 9, with numbers onsite limited to TWO family members per student. As we discovered in 2020, the filming of this event and the splicing in of some video highlights and performances enhanced the viewing experience on the evening of December 15 when the whole production/performance was available to be streamed to family homes. I know that many families hosted Graduation celebrations on that night and commented on the uniqueness of the experience, as well as affording the opportunity to have more than the usual 3 or 4 ticketed attendees to view the graduation. With regards the onsite ceremony on December 9, as it is an outdoors event, there are no specific requirements for proof of vaccination status. If perchance, we needed to move indoors, that whole direction would change and those unable to prove double vaccination would be excluded. We do however continue to emphasise the need for physical distancing and trust everyone is supportive of our conservative approach to onsite events especially as we head towards the Christmas break.

I hope you have a lovely weekend.

Kind regards,

Bill Kersing

Principal

Planning Week Beginning tomorrow, Friday 26 November and extending into next week, all staff will be involved in planning sessions with their 2022 teaching team. Michael Ymer, our Mathematics consultant will also return to Viewbank to lead Professional Learning with our staff.

Specialist teachers will cover classes while teachers are engaged in planning sessions.

Supporting 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence

A message (in part) from Stephen Fraser, Deputy Secretary - School Education Program and Support

This week marks the beginning of the United Nations’ annual ‘16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence’, which galvanises individuals, communities, and organisations to end gender inequalities and prevent gender-based violence.

Coinciding with this global initiative on Thursday 25 November 2021 is Respect Victoria’s annual ‘Respect Women: call it out (Respect Is)’ campaign, which asks us to help change the attitudes and behaviours that enable violence against women.

These initiatives are a timely reminder that we all have a role in calling out the attitudes and behaviours that drive family violence, discrimination, stereotyping, and marginalisation.

Family violence is one of the world’s most prevalent and pervasive human rights violations. In 2019, more than 243 million women and girls worldwide were subjected to sexual or physical violence by an intimate partner.

We know in Victoria last year there was an increase in family violence reports to police. The pressures and isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic made it even more difficult for people experiencing violence to seek help.

Schools are uniquely placed to prevent, identify and respond to family violence – and offer support to students, families and staff where family violence is suspected or known. I’m proud to say that, with your support, we have made major steps this year towards creating a future free from family violence. The launch of the Information Sharing Schemes and Family Violence Reforms are supporting schools to identify and respond to family violence.

All Victorian government schools are now signed on to Respectful Relationships and taking a whole school approach to promoting and modelling respect, positive attitudes and behaviours, and addressing the attitudes and behaviours that can lead to family violence.

Together, we have the chance to help lead this change.

If you or your family require support the following external Family Violence services and resources are available:

• Safe Steps (1800 015 188) Victoria’s 24-hour state-wide family violence support service
• 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) provides 24-hour sexual assault and family violence information, counselling and support
• Kids Helpline (1800 551 800) 24-hour counselling for young people aged 5 to 25 years
• Orange Door supports families who are experiencing or have experienced family violence and families who need extra support with the care of children
• The Lookout for resources on family violence and related services in Victoria
• What’s ok at home? a website for children and young people aged 10 to 17 years old.

Take care and have a good week,

Gill

Face Masks Please remember to provide masks for your children as the school only has a limited number of disposal masks available.

2022 Parent Payment ArrangementsThe 2022 Parent Payment Arrangements letter was emailed to families yesterday.

We continue to value your contributions in supporting our school’s programs and resources. These contributions assist us to broaden the educational experience for our students. Without your contributions some of these may not be possible.

Please note: All classroom supplies will be provided directly to the classrooms in bulk, we are no longer providing individual book packs. Teachers (including specialist teachers) will distribute stationery and other supplies to the students as they are needed.

Payments will be able to be made on Compass from Saturday 18 December 2021.

If you did not receive the Parent Payment Arrangements letter please contact the office asap.

Remote Learning: Limited Access

Access to school grounds is limited to:

• school staff
• students attending on-site learning
• contractors, including cleaners and maintenance workers
• outside-school-hours-care (OHSC) staff, enrolled children and their families.

If you need to collect or drop off anything at the school please call the office and a staff member will meet you at the main gate (Gate 1) on Nevin Parade.

Thank you for your understanding and stay safe.

Lucy Addati

Business Manager

School Wide Positive Behaviour Framework Last week the school had the opportunity to vote for mascots for our School Wide Positive Behaviour Framework which will be in its implementation stage in 2022. We congratulate Kaiah in 2K who is our winner! We cannot wait to have our little bees around the school reminding and helping us with Viewbank Primary’s expected behaviours. Kaiah is working this week with Miss Dean from the SWPBS team to digitise and finalise her designs ready to printing! Well done to Kaiah and all those who submitted an entry. Our school is very proud to have such creative students who are committed to improving our school culture!

Bakery Lunch Orders - Every Second Thursday - All Term 4 dates are now open for ordering via Compass Canteen.

• Thursday 9th December (Orders closing on 6th December, 3:00pm)

Lower Plenty Bakehouse will be providing the school with fundraising Lunch Orders every second Thursday. These lunches will be implemented via our Parents and Friends Committee and all money raised will be used towards our major school oval upgrade.

Orders need to be placed in advance via Compass Canteen. Ordering will close the Monday before the lunch date at 3pm.

Please see attached a Parent User Guide on how to order via Compass Canteen. Please note a 35 cents order fee will be charged at check out.

​​ICY POLE FRIDAY Students are able to purchase icy poles over the counter at lunchtime every Friday. All icy poles cost $1.00 each. Due to COVID-19 Guidelines, this event has been cancelled until further notice.

Lunches must be ordered online using the CLASSROOM CUISINE website.

Extra Curricula Clubs We have a range of weekly extra curricula activities that students are invited to participate in. Some are free and others require parent payment. If your child wishes to join please encourage them to go along on the scheduled day or you may like to contact the school office or the classroom teacher to discuss participation.

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SECOND HAND UNIFORM SALE - Every Friday 8:45am to 9:15am, next to the music room. Jumpers with the school logo, long and short sleeve school polo tops and school dresses will be $5.00 and all other items $2.00. We are currently asking for donations of any unwanted reusable school uniform items to sell at our stall. Due to COVID-19 Guidelines, this stall is closed until further notice.

Instrumental Music Enrolments Can all students who would like to join our school instrumental music programs please inform the relevant teacher below of your expression of interest.

SINGING WITH GABRIELLA - Gabriella

• Email: favrettogab@gmail.com
• Phone: 0413 676 733

STRINGS WITH MR CAI - Gabriella

• Email: favrettogab@gmail.com
• Phone: 0413 676 733

GUITAR/BASS GUITAR - Alec

• Email: alec.stalder@gmail.com
• Phone: 0422 690 842

PIANO/KEYBOARD - Ella

• Email: ellac.blackburn@gmail.com
• Phone: 0410 938 840

DRUMS - James

• Email: orangejimmy@gmail.com
• Phone: 0405 845 628

PHONE NUMBER: 0448 075 422

EMAIL: viewbank@oshclub.com.au

A PLUS SCHOOLWEAR Our uniform supplier is A Plus Schoolwear which is located at 41-43 Northern Road Heidelberg West. Open hours are Monday, Wednesday and Friday’s from 9am to 4.30pm (closed on weekend and public holidays).

You can also purchase your uniform online at www.aplusschoolwear.com.au