PUPIL FREE DAYS 2023 (TheirCare will be running their day care programs at school on all student free days)
- Monday 6th November - Report writing day
2023 TERM DATES
- Term 3: 10th July - 15th September (2:30pm finish)
- Term 4: 2nd October - 20th December (1:30pm finish)
SCHOOL COUNCIL The August meeting of School Council is scheduled for next Tuesday, August 8, commencing at 7pm in the staffroom. All documents will be distributed to Council members by this Friday.
100 DAYS OF SCHOOL Our Foundation students celebrated their first 100 days of school yesterday with festivities and celebrations in classrooms as the attached photos clearly illustrate! Well done to all.
STORY LAND The first of our Kinder-Foundation 2024 transition sessions for Term 3 is taking place next Tuesday from 9.30am-10.30am in the Library.
FAMILY LIFE PROGRAM The Grade 5 Family Life program commences late next week and will be pre-empted by a parent session available online on Wednesday, August 9 from 6.30pm to 7.30pm. Grade 5 families should have received details and the link to access this in a specific compass post but if not please contact any Grade 5 teacher for details.
BUILDING WORKS As mentioned in recent newsletters and Compass posts, the Grade 3 and 4 students are now firmly entrenched in their new buildings and enjoying the lengthy walk to and from these each day. Short term pain for long term gain!! The Administration building is taking shape each day with the steel due to be finished this week and framing taking place shortly thereafter. Thank you to nearly everyone for adhering to the new drop off arrangements in Nevin Parade, although it only needs one person to park and leave their vehicle to upset the flow of traffic and consequent safety of others. Please in the interests of all, if you need to park and bring your child into the school grounds park in the appropriate areas and walk that extra distance. Parking officers have been around in recent weeks.
2023 PARENT/CAREGIVER/GUARDIAN OPINION SURVEY By next Monday, you will receive an invitation to participate in this year’s survey. Whether you have a number of suggestions for ways we can improve, or you find us faultless (!), we would really like to hear that from you. The survey is open until Friday 8 September, but you are encouraged to complete it in the first instance and then, secondly, sooner rather than later! Thank you.
WORKING BEE We have scheduled this term’s working bee for Sunday, August 20 from 9am, so plenty of notice! Lots to do around the new Grade 3 and 4 classrooms and opportunity to see how it looks now and suggest ways we can make it better. More to come in Compass posts and future newsletters.
NEAR MISSES AND COURTESY In an alarming trend, there were a couple of near misses with cars and children on Winston Road earlier this week. As far as we can tell anecdotally, there seems to be a trend for some parents to encourage their children to cross the road at places other then the crossing, ‘calling’ them across from their open driver’s side windows. Please take care, practise and emphasise correct and safe ways to cross the road and be patient. Whilst on traffic management, we have also had complaints of larger vehicles parking on nature strips in Lascelles Avenue and damaging the well-tended grass which has caused much disquiet with our neighbours.
Kind regards,
Bill Kersing
Principal
Cost of Living Support Living in Viewbank and surrounds, we are fortunate to have a diverse community – culturally and socio-economically. Viewbank Primary School (and of course all local government schools) play a vital part in the community. Staff in schools are often made aware of challenges faced by families. Cost of living issues, whether that is rent, mortgage, food, energy or services (such as seeing a doctor or getting a tradie) has continued to play a huge role in family decisions and for some, family cohesion.
From time to time, we have had generous families offer support to school families who may be doing it tough. Generally, we refer these families to support local charity organisations. I have listed some of these below. If you require support, these organisations may be able to help you.
*Most of the information below is taken directly from the organisation’s website or social media pages.
Macleod Pantry
Looking after the those in hardship, the elderly, single parents, those who have social anxiety and who just need a helping hand.
If you would like to donate items, these are some local drop off points:
- Ritz of Rosanna
- Livingstone Community Centre
- Love & Co Australia - Warringal Shopping Centre
- Macleod IGA at Macleod Village
You can also contact them via their Facebook page: Macleod Pantry or at one of the drop off points listed above.
Big Group Hug
Big Group Hug supply families with essential items for kids including clothing, toiletries, books and toys. You can find out how to donate here: https://biggrouphug.org/support-us/.
For support, you can contact them here: https://biggrouphug.org/get-in-touch/contact-us/ or via email info@biggrouphug.org
Anglicare
As costs for day-to-day expenses such as rent, food and power continue to rise, a setback such as sickness, loss of a job or an unexpected bill can make families feel like their financial situation is getting out of control. Anglicare can provide immediate practical assistance as well as longer-term solutions.
Services include:
- Emergency Relief
- Financial Counselling
- Community Support Programs
- Family and Parent Support
- Education
- Family Violence
- Alcohol and Drug Support
- Children and Young People
You can contact them here: https://www.anglicarevic.org.au/our-services/ or via phone 1800 809722
Have a great weekend.
Patrick
FOUNDATION 100 DAYS OF SCHOOL CELEBRATIONS Congratulations to our amazing Foundation students and their families as they celebrated their first 100 days of school on Wednesday. The students had such fun throughout the day participating in a range of 100 themed activities organised by our wonderful Foundation Team - Annabell, Bessie, Ellen and Amanda and supported by Melissa, Kirtley, Sarina and Tracy. The students enjoyed dressing up in their party clothes, wearing their 100 days crown, decorating their celebration t-shirt, sharing a special picnic lunchbox and enjoying maths and literacy activities based around 100. We look forward to the continuing journey.
Building Friendships Over the next two weeks I will share information from the Raising Children’s Network regarding how to support your child to build positive friendships. This week the focus will be on pre-teens( 9-11 years) and teenagers (12+ years)
Why friendships are important Good friends and friendships are important to all children but especially pre-teens and teenagers because they give them:
- a sense of belonging and being valued by people other than their family
- confidence, security and comfort
- a safe space to talk about puberty and the changes it brings
- experience in getting along with people
- a social group where they can do new things and experiment with values, roles, identities and ideas.
Positive friendships are an important part of the journey to adulthood. They help teenagers learn important social and emotional skills, like being sensitive to other people’s thoughts, feelings and wellbeing.
Helping pre-teens and teenagers build friendship skills Teenagers might be focused on their friends, but they still need your help and support to build and maintain positive and supportive friendships.
Good parent-child relationships tend to lead to children having positive relationships with peers. So being warm and supportive, staying connected and actively listening to your child can help them develop friendship skills. You’ll also be better able to support your child if friendship problems come up.
Being a good role model is important too. Parents who are keen to spend time with their own friends are more likely to have children with healthy friendships. It’s also important for your child to see you looking out for your friends, and showing that friendship is a two-way thing.
Praising your child when you see them being fair, trusting and supportive encourages them to keep working on these positive social traits.
Getting to know your child’s friends shows your child you understand how important these friendships are. You can do this by encouraging your child to have friends over and giving them a space in your home, or giving your child’s friends a lift home after social outings.
When pre-teens and teenagers find it hard to make friends Some children prefer having 1-2 close friends, rather than socialising in a big group. If your child is like this, but seems generally happy and content, there’s no need to do anything.
But if your child has trouble making friends and is worried about this, there are some things you can do together:
- Think about your child’s interests and strengths. Based on this, you could look for new extracurricular activities for your child or encourage them to join a club, sports team or social group. Mixing with people who share similar interests is a great way to start friendships and build confidence.
- Spend time with extended family and family friends. Plan a barbeque or outing where your child can spend time with people they already know.
- Help your child plan an activity with friends. This could be watching a movie at home, having a sleepover or a baking afternoon, or playing some sport at the local park.
- Make sure your child feels comfortable inviting friends home, and give them plenty of space when they do.
- Think about a community activity for your child. This can give your child a chance to meet others and practise social skills, especially if they work with young people.
- Try to work out whether there are particular issues that are making it difficult for your child to make friends, like lack of opportunity, social skills or confidence. Then think about ways you can work on these. You might want to ask for professional advice for complex issues. Your GP is a good place to start.
- Give your child plenty of praise and encouragement. Try not to pressure your child about friends or constantly discuss the situation.
Not all friendships are positive or good for children. Among teenagers, negative relationships are sometimes called ‘toxic friendships’ and the people in them are called ‘frenemies’. Your child might need help to avoid or deal with toxic friendships.
Balancing friendships and relationships with parents In the teenage years, young people often spend much more time with friends and less time with parents. But your child still needs you and the secure base you provide. Being interested and available lets your child know that they can turn to you when they need to. As your child gets older and more mature, you might also notice that your child gives you some support too.
Teenagers do share a lot with and copy a great deal from their friends. For example, teenagers might change their behaviour, appearance or interests to show that they belong to a certain group of friends. As long as your child isn’t doing anything destructive or dangerous, this kind of behaviour often shows that your child feels supported and confident enough to try new things.
It’s also normal for friendships to change. You might notice that your child drifts away from old friends or needs support to make new friends.
Parents and friends play different roles in teenagers’ lives. You influence your child’s long-term decisions to do with values and morals. Your child’s friends are more likely to influence short-term choices, like appearance and interests. Strong relationships with both parents and friends help teenagers grow into well-adjusted adults with strong social skills.
What teenage friendships look like During the late pre-teen and early teenage years, friendships become more intense, close and supportive. The amount that teenagers communicate with their friends increases.
Teenage friendships tend to be based on personal similarity, acceptance and sharing. Same-sex friendships are most common during the early high school years. As they get older, many teenagers also make friends with the opposite sex.
The internet and social media let teenagers make and maintain friendships. This is a natural extension of their offline and face-to-face interactions.
Have a great week,
Gill
PRINCIPALS' DAY It is with immense pleasure that we take a moment to reflect on the outstanding leadership of our wonderful school principals, Bill, Gill and Patrick on Principals’ Day. Their dedication and guidance have made a profound impact on our school community, enriching the lives of students, parents, and staff alike. Our principals have been a constant source of inspiration and encouragement. Their exceptional leadership, and unyielding commitment to our school community has created a culture of open communication, where students and staff feel valued and supported.
On behalf of the entire school community, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to Bill, Gill and Patrick for their unwavering commitment to our school's values - Responsibility, Resilience, Respect & Kindness. Their vision and passion for education have created an environment where learning thrives, creativity flourishes, and values are nurtured.
KEYBOARD TEACHER We are currently looking for an additional keyboard teacher (instrumental music teacher) for one day a week. If you are interested or can recommend a teacher, please contact Lucy Addati on 9459 1512 or lucy.addati@education.vic.gov.au
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.
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
Save the Date! Book Week will soon be upon us. Start planning your favourite book character costume for our Book Parade on Monday 21st August.
Each child who wears a costume will go into a raffle with some fantastic book prizes!
Here are some links to some simple costume ideas, if you’re in need of some additional inspiration:
- https://www.familiesmagazine.com.au/childrens-book-week-costume-ideas/
- https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/aug/22/easy-book-week-costume-ideas-do-you-have-a-box-there-are-lots-of-cubes-in-childrens-books
- https://www.simplifycreateinspire.com/book-week-costume-ideas/
- https://www.bountyparents.com.au/expert-advice/easy-book-week-costumes/
The school has many wonderful literacy activities planned for Book Week including author visits and more.
Further details will the sent out in the next few weeks.
Fundraiser For Bella Recently one of our year 4 students , Bella, was diagnosed with an incredibly rare condition called complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) that causes her excruciating pain if she moves or her leg is touched. Our JSCs have decided that they want to help her and her family to get the treatment she needs.
We will be holding a fundraiser on Thursday the 10th of August that will be a free dress day. Children are encouraged to wear a single colour of the rainbow resembling “hope”. Please bring a donation. All proceeds will go towards Bella!
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Get a group together, purchase a table of 10 or if you are on your own grab a seat to enjoy our long awaited trivia night.
Friday 8th September, 2023 - 6:45pm.
This event is 18 years and over, BYO drinks, a great night to be enjoyed by all.
There will be a silent auction on the night with a number of great items to be won. This will be opened up to all prior to the event if you can't make the night and wish to pop a bid in for an item. More details of the items will be announced closer to the night.
We will have rounds of trivia questions and also some local knowledge questions, games through the night and also lucky seat draws and raffle prizes to be won.
Please see attached flyer with some general Q&A questions about the night.
Tickets are $30 per person and can be purchased through this link
https://www.trybooking.com/CHXLA
We would love to see you all there to enjoy what plans to be a great social community event to raise money for our Stephanie Alexander Kitchen.
Parent And Friends Committee
VPS Parents and Friends Committee Father's Day Stall 2023 - Thursday 31 August 2023
The popular VPS Father's Day Stall will be running during school hours on Thursday 31 August 2023.
Students enjoy the hunt of finding the perfect gift for their dad, grandpa, uncle and/or special person.
Support your child to bring along up to $10 on the day, as well as a carry bag.
Class Communication: WhatsApp As many of you will already know at Viewbank Primary School we have a Class communication network set up via WhatsApp where each class has its own group to chat, share important information and ask questions about school based activities. These groups are parent run and overseen by the school Parent and Friends committee.
If you have not yet joined your class group and would like to be included please email the school office and provide the following information-
- Your name:
- Child's class:
- Mobile number:
These details will then be passed on to the parent representative for your class so you can be added.
If you have more than 1 child who has started at the school please provide each class they are in as part of the above information.
Regards,
P&F Committee
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 3 Fundraising Lunch Order Dates are:
- Thursday 10th August (Orders closing on 7th August, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 17th August (Orders closing on 14th August, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 31st August (Orders closing on 28th August, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 7th September (Orders closing on 4th September, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 14th September (Orders closing on 11th September, 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 3 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 $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 - 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
Shop Details:
- Unit 3/30 Heaths Court, Mill Park
- T: 9436 4005
- E: info@northernregionaluniforms.com.au
Opening Hours:
- Monday to Thursday 9am to 5pm
- Friday 9am to 3pm
- Saturday 9am to 12pm
Online Ordering Please Visit: www.aplusschoolwear.com.au