PUPIL FREE DAYS 2023 (TheirCare will be running their day care programs at school on all student free days)
- Monday 8th May - Staff professional development
- Monday 10th July - Three way conferences
- Monday 6th November - Report writing day
- One further pupil free day to be advised in due course.
2023 TERM DATES
- Term 1: 27th January - 6th April (2:30pm finish)
- Term 2: 24th April - 23rd June (2:30pm finish)
- Term 3: 10th July - 15th September (2:30pm finish)
- Term 4: 2nd October - 20th December (1:30pm finish)
PUPIL FREE DAYS The final pupil free days for 2023 have been approved by School Council. Previously Monday, May 8 and Monday, July 10 had been confirmed for staff professional development and three way conferences respectively. We can now add Monday, November 6 (the day before the Melbourne Cup holiday) as a report writing day. On all three occasions there will be no classes for students but TheirCare will be running their day care programs at school. Please note that there will also be one further pupil free day when all staff will be having a common Professional Practice day – this will be advised in due course.
APPOINTMENT Kelsey Mentiplay’s final day as the teacher of Grade 3M will be on Friday, March 31 before she commences maternity leave. I am pleased to announce that her replacement will be Sarah McDonald. Sarah is well known to our school having completed placements in both Grade 3 and Grade 4 classrooms in recent terms – she is even volunteering on the Grade 6 camp in upcoming weeks. As part of what we hope will be a seamless transition, Sarah will also be spending time in Grade 3M prior to Kelsey’s departure, team teaching and getting to know her students better with Kelsey in partnership. We are even able to keep the Grade 3M name – how seamless is that! We welcome Sarah to our school officially and hope her stay with us is long and successful and, of course, wish Kelsey all the best as she and her husband Ben enter this next exciting phase of their lives together.
WORKING BEE POSTPONEMENT The working bee that was to have taken place this weekend has had to be postponed until Sunday, March 26. A critical phase of the Art and Japanese classroom demolition needs to be completed on Saturday and Sunday, hence the postponement. Nonetheless, we are still hoping for a big turnout the weekend after – further details will be forthcoming in Compass feeds and mail outs.
GATES AND BUILDING WORKS As we enter the next important phase in our building works, you will undoubtedly have observed fences going up and entrances temporarily blocked off. Currently Gate 1 is closed as the Art and Japanese rooms are readied for demolition with services being cut off, asbestos removed and trees pruned or cut down. There may be one or two days in the next three weeks where Gate 2 access is also limited – for safety reasons. Gate 5 (the turning circle gate), Gate 4 (the double gates leading onto the oval) and Gate 3 (Winston Road) will be your gates of certainty over the next three weeks.
SCHOOL COUNCIL NEWS At Tuesday night’s meeting, office bearers were elected for 2023. I wish to congratulate Jason Hemingway (President), David Filcoff (Vice-President), Michelle Pan (Treasurer) and William Tong (Secretary) on their election. In addition, School Council co-opted Anthony Spence to the final one-year vacancy on School Council for this year – we welcome him to Council.
DIVISIONAL SWIMMING Congratulations to our swimmers who participated at the Divisional championships at Oak Park Aquatic Centre on Tuesday. We had twelve swimmers in total who qualified as a result of strong performances in school and district events. Joshua Cadusch, Anne Carpenter, Luke Cullen, Johan In and Harrison Kent all received second place ribbons for various events, with Inaya Bhardwaj, Anne (again), Johan (again) Madison Ford, Rubi Parker and Alexandra Palmer receiving third place ribbons. We also congratulate Max Berry, Darragh Finn and Joachim Lai for their efforts in representing themselves and our school at this high level event. Very proud of all of you!
Hope everyone has a lovely weekend.
Kind regards,
Bill Kersing
Principal
Planning Week Next week (20th to 24th March) is our Planning Week. Traditionally, this normally occurs in the last or second last week of term. However, this term we have our Year 6s heading off to Camp in the second last week, and we have a shortened last week of term due to finishing on the Thursday at 2:30pm (it is Good Friday on the 7th April!).
For our new families to our community, Planning Week is where your child/ren’s specialist classes are compressed into one day (they do not have specialist classes at any other time throughout the week). All classroom teachers in a year level (e.g. Foundation) have the same day together.
This day is to reflect on the past term, and to plan for Term 2. A question we sometime have from parents is ‘Will my child have the same Specialist Teacher? e.g. Mr Prell for PE’. The answer is (like all good questions) ‘it depends’. The reason for this is that we have a number of part time staff in specialist roles and they may not be available on the allocated days. Our Specialist Teachers also receive time to reflect on Term 1 and to plan for next term.
The timetable for next week is as follows:
- Monday 20th March: Year 1 and Year 2
- Tuesday 21st: Year 6
- Wednesday 22nd: Year 4 and Year 5
- Thursday 23rd: Year 3
- Friday 24th: Foundation
Colour Explosion Fun Run This is all ready to go tomorrow after lunch. The Parents and Friends have a Frequently Asked Questions flyer below, but I will answer a few questions (from the FAQ and others we have been asked) here:
- Can parents come and watch? Yes! But please remember, space is limited (on the oval and car spots in the surrounding streets) due to the building works.
- Is Friday 17th a Free Dress Day? Yes. Please note, no singlets or tank tops are allowed. Students must wear closed toe footwear. Any students that are wearing their school clothes (particularly a dress or school top) will not be able to participate.
- Can my child get changed at school? We are requesting that all students, Foundation to Year 6, come to school in Free Dress. 650 students changing at lunch will make for a very clogged bathroom area!
- Do we need to bring a gold coin donation? No. All students can participate providing they are wearing the correct clothing for the event.
- What happens if my child doesn’t want to participate? No problem, we will not be forcing any student to participate if they do not want to.
- It will be hot in the afternoon; can my child wear their school hat? The answer is yes. However, it would be best to provide another named hat that does not matter if it is stained or lost (remember, we will have nearly 700 students on the oval!)
- Will there be sunscreen available? Yes, but our school policy prevents staff members from applying it to students.
- Will the colour powder wash out? In most cases, yes. However, we have heard from others that if some colour is concentrated in one spot, it may not. Also, the quality of the powder may influence its washability. *All clothing worn MAY be stained. Please do not send any new or expensive clothing to school tomorrow.
- What happens at the end? Students will be taking their school bags to the oval after lunch. Students will NOT be returning to classrooms. They will be dismissed from the oval at 3:30pm (TheirCare is aware of our event tomorrow and will make appropriate arrangements). *For those of you who need to drive your children home, it would be a great idea to bring a towel or other covering to put over your car seats.
- What is the MOST important thing to remember? For everyone to have fun!
This is an inclusive event that has a dual purpose - Fundraising to help with various projects around the school (must be approved by our School Council) and as a school community event that brings us all together.
National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy Our Year 3 and Year 5 students will be completing the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) next week. The following table shows our schedule:
Make up assessments will be provided within the assessment window (between Wednesday 15th March and Monday 27th March). Make up tests will only be provided for students after the class has attempted the tests and in line with NAPLAN administration guidelines. We will not be doing make up tests in advance.
If you have any concerns about your Year 3 or Year 5 child completing NAPLAN in 2023, please contact your child's teacher a soon as possible.
Mobile Phone Policy and Other ‘Wearable’ Devices We have seen an increase in students wearing ‘smart’ watches at school. Any device that can make a call and/or send a message and/or take pictures and/or take video is NOT allowed at school without the express permission of Mr Kersing. Except with Mr Kersing’s permission, any device of this nature must be sent to the school office at the beginning of the day and will be able to be collected at the end of the day. Our student’s privacy is of the utmost importance and students are not always aware of the consequences of their actions. This policy has been put in place by the Department of Education and is there to protect all students at school. The Mobile Phone Policy can be found here: http://www.viewbankps.vic.edu.au/s/Mobile-Phones-Policy-Viewbank-PS-Updated-20-December-2019.pdf Smart watches and the like fall under the category of ‘Personal Mobile Device’.
Have a great weekend.
Patrick
I hope everyone was able to take advantage of the lovely weather over the long weekend and find some time to relax. This term has been so busy and we still have three weeks to squeeze even more into a packed schedule including the much anticipated Colour Run tomorrow, NAPLAN for Yr 3 & 5, Harmony Week activities and Camp for grade 6. There is just so much happening!
If you are feeling tired or your children are struggling with sleep after a busy day, the following article from the department might be worth a read.
Supporting sleep health While we know sleep is essential for good health, research shows that many children and young people are not getting enough sleep on school nights. This can affect thinking, concentration, memory, reaction times and mood.
Research shows about 12% of primary school-aged children, a quarter of 12- to 15-year-olds and half of 16- to 17-year-olds don’t get enough sleep on school nights. The recommended amount of time to sleep for primary school-aged children is 9 to 11 hours. For teenagers, it’s 8 to 10 hours.
Signs that your child is not getting enough sleep can include:
- low mood and irritability during social interactions
- reluctance or arguing about getting off devices and going to bed
- falling asleep during the day
- difficulties waking up for school and sleeping in late on weekends to catch up
- changes to communicating or interacting at home.
You can help your child to improve their sleep by:
- establishing a regular sleep pattern and consistent bedtime routine
- supporting them to avoid using electronic devices such as smartphones before going to bed and in bed
- encouraging your child to exercise and spend time outside in daylight, steering clear of vigorous activity in the hour before sleep
- encouraging them to wind down and relax before going to bed.
If your child is still having trouble sleeping, has persistent problems with low mood, excessive daytime sleepiness, restlessness in bed, severe snoring or wakening unrefreshed, despite getting adequate length sleep, they should see a doctor.
For more information on sleep health, you can refer to:
- Sleep tips for children and Facts about sleep for parents and school staff, from the Sleep Health Foundation
- Why sleep is so important, from the Kids Helpline’s
- Sleep explained, from the Better Health Channel.
Other News The Camps and Excursions Policy, available on the school website, has recently been updated to reflect recent DET requirements.
Don’t forget to read about our planned Harmony Week celebrations later in the newsletter. Zara and Taya have done an amazing job planning and communicating a range of activities that will take place next week.
Have a great week,
Gill
TheirCare (Outside of School Hours Care) Please be aware that if your child is not registered with TheirCare they will be unable to access the program in an emergency. Therefore it is highly recommend that you register your child/ren with TheirCare in case you may need it one day.
SCHOOL TOURS We will be running school tours on a Tue, Wed, Thu at 9.30am for prospective families from 09Mar. Please call the office to make a booking.
LATE ARRIVALS Please ensure children who arrive late go straight to the office to be marked as present. If the child does not come to the office for a late pass a text message will be sent to the parent/carer notifying that the child is absent. Late arrivals can only be time stamped at the office. When Parents/carers record the late arrival in Compass it provides us with the explanation but does not mark your child as present. When your child presents at the office, staff will record your child’s actual arrival time which updates the class roll.
CAMPS, SPORTS AND EXCURSIONS FUND (CSEF) The Government assisted Fund provides payments for eligible students to attend camps, sports, incursions and excursions ($125 per child). Applications for the Governments ‘CSEF Fund’ can be accessed by filling in the application form and returning it to the office with a copy of your current Health Care Card. Families holding a valid means-tested concession card or temporary foster parents are eligible to apply) i.e. a Centrelink Health Care Card or Pension Concession Card or Veteran Affairs Gold Card.
If you applied for the CSEF at your child's school in 2022, you do not need to complete an application form in 2023 unless there has been a change in your family circumstances.
You only need to complete an application form if any of the following changes have occurred:
- new student enrolments; your child has started or changed schools in 2023 or you did not apply in 2022.
- changed family circumstances; such as a change of custody, change of name, concession card number, or new siblings commencing at the school in 2023.
Funds are paid to the school and will be automatically allocated to the Extra-Curricular Items and Activities unless otherwise stated by the parent at the start of the year.
WORKING WITH CHILDREN CHECK (WWCC) A ‘Working with Children Check’ is just one part of creating and maintaining a child-safe environment. It is a requirement that all parents/careers who wish to volunteer or participate in school activities have a current WWCC. https://www.workingwithchildren.vic.gov.au/
Kind regards,
Lucy Addati
Business Manager
In Week 9 from the 20th -24th of March Viewbank Primary will be celebrating Harmony Week.
What Is Harmony Week? Harmony Week is a time to celebrate Australian multiculturalism, and the successful way Australia has brought all cultures together. Australia is one of the most successful multicultural countries in the world and we should celebrate this and work to maintain it.
Harmony Week Message The message of Harmony Week for 2023 is Everyone Belongs. It is about inclusiveness, respect and belonging for all Australians, regardless of cultural or linguistic background, united by a set of core Australian values.
What Is Viewbank Doing To Celebrate Harmony Week? Viewbank Primary celebrates Harmony Week with great pride. Our Year 6 captains Taya Gualano and Zara Narula along with our other marvellous captains have organised many fun events during the week. The Prep- 2s will be participating in a Spotto game where they will learn how to say hello in different languages .
The 3-6s will be doing a scavenger hunt finding flags hidden across the school that will have a fact on the back so they can learn a little bit about the top 20 countries the kids from Viewbank Primary come from. All year levels will get to participate in class activities related to harmony week and the theme Everyone Belongs.
Taya and Zara will be taking lots of photos across the week and sharing these with the community the following week in the newsletter and on facebook. They will be making an announcement at assembly in Week 9 to inform students about Harmony Week.
On Tuesday the 21st of March students will be invited to bring something significant to their culture. It would be fabulous if students could tell their classmates about the significance of their item. This is not an out of uniform day.
Written by Zara and Taya
The Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge is now open and Viewbank Primary School is excited to be participating. The PRC application offers a range of exciting features including:
- access to a library catalogue (including book images and blurbs)
- a modern user-friendly interface
- rewarding students with badges as challenge milestones are achieved
- the option for students to mark books as a favourite, give them a star rating or complete a book review
The Challenge is open to all Victorian children from birth to Year 10 in recognition of the importance of reading for literacy development. It is not a competition; but a personal challenge for children to read a set number of books by 8 September 2023.
Children from Prep to Year 2 are encouraged to read or ‘experience’ 30 books with their parents and teachers. Children from Year 3 to Year 6 are challenged to read 15 books.
Books included in the Challenge book list can be found online. Books borrowed from the Library, read at home, read with parents and read in the classroom can all be counted in your Challenge total. Students must read the required number of books from the Challenge list to complete the Challenge.
All students who meet the Challenge will receive a completion card at Assembly and a certificate of achievement in late November.
There will be a reward for the first ‘whole class’ that meets the Challenge.
All VPS students have been registered to participate in the Challenge. Classroom teachers will issue username and password details to enable students to log into their account online.
To login into your student account, view the booklist and for more information about the Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge, visit: https://www.vic.gov.au/premiers-reading-challenge
BOOK CLUB Catalogues have sent home this week. All orders are due by Wednesday 22nd March. Every dollar you spend earns points to buy more books for the Library. Thank you for your support.
Please complete the event registration as detailed in the link below if you haven’t already. Fundraising closes on the date of the event, 17 March 2023; so, get fundraising!
The funds raised will go towards improving our school grounds and classrooms and the cost of the event. The specifics of these improvements are to be decided, and communicated once the major building work is nearing completion.
Free Dress Day - wear a WHITE shirt that covers your shoulders (no singlets) and closed in shoes. Students wearing school uniform will not be able to participate.
Please inform your class teacher via email if you do not wish for your child to be covered in non-toxic, biodegradable colour powder from head to toe. IF YOU DO NOT EMAIL YOUR CLASS TEACHER, THIS WILL CONFIRM THAT YOUR CHILD CAN PARTICIPATE.
This fundraiser is run in conjunction with Viewbank Primary School by Australian Fundraising (https://australianfundraising.com.au) with a percentage of funds raised going towards the running of the event including materials provided, fundraising platform and prizes.
Lower Plenty Bakehouse will be providing the school with fundraising Lunch Orders every Thursday. These lunches have been implemented via our Parents and Friends Committee. All money raised will be used towards our major school upgrade.
Our Term 1 Fundraising Lunch Order Dates are:
- Thursday 23rd March (Orders closing on 20th March, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 30th March (Orders closing on 27th March, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 6th April (Orders closing on 3rd April, 3:00pm)
Orders need to be placed in advance via Compass Canteen. Ordering will close the Monday before the lunch date at 3pm. All of Term 1 lunch dates are now open for orders, and can be placed in advance for the whole term if you choose to do so.
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.
Parent assistance is required on Lunch Days from 10:30am to 12:30pm to assist with the packing of our orders. If you are available to assist in anyway can you please email the school at viewbank.ps@education.vic.gov.au so your name can be added to our roster.
Thank you for your support.
ICY POLE FRIDAY Students are able to purchase icy poles over the counter at lunchtime every Friday. All icy poles cost $1.00 each.
Entertainment Book 20% of the membership goes directly to support our fundraising at Viewbank Primary School. https://www.entertainment.com.au/current-promotion
Lunches must be ordered online using the CLASSROOM CUISINE website.
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WEEKLY 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.
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 - MR CAI
- Email: cai66@optusnet.com.au
- Phone: 0403 490 078
GUITAR/BASS GUITAR - Alec
- Email: alec.stalder@gmail.com
DRUMS/BEGINNER KEYBOARD - Michael
- Email: michaelfindlaymcnab@gmail.com
- Phone: 0451 394 540
PIANO/KEYBOARD – Tiaryn Griggs
- Email: tiaryngriggs@gmail.com
Our school has partnered with an independent provider called TheirCare to provide exceptional Outside School Hours Care services for our school community.
The program is available for all children at Viewbank Primary School from 6:30am until 9:00am in the morning and from 3:30pm until 6:15pm each school day.
During School Holidays & Pupil Free Days the service will operate from 6:30am until 6:15pm.
Families wishing to use this service can visit the TheirCare website: www.theircare.com.au
Families are eligible for a Government Rebate called the Child Care Subsidy which can reduce the cost per session by up to 85%.
More information can be obtained by contacting the school or ringing TheirCare Support Team on 1300 072 410.
TheirCare provides a stimulating and safe environment for all children. During sessions, children develop life-skills, friendships, confidence and creativity through play-based programs.
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