NEWSLETTER 4/2017

PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

It is hard to believe that we have reached the final newsletter of the term – how fast it has gone which I think is indicative of how much we have had going on.

School Fete

One reason the end of term is creeping up on us is that we have our fete this weekend and it has been a source of great excitement.  While the fun begins at 10am on Saturday we will see a lot of preparation taking place from today.  This week we have seen many volunteers in site involved in the preparation of stalls and events and as of Friday afternoon, the first of the rides will begin to arrive.  This will mean there will be changed conditions at the Blackwood Avenue side of the school.  Well done to everyone involved and we are looking forward to a great day.

Kids Cafe

Mentone Park Primary School has a very unique canteen where food is made and prepared at the canteen.  While we appreciate having this as part of our community, the model requires many hands on deck.  We are now finding the Kids Café is starting to struggle to have those hands on deck.  The reality of our canteen being successful is that we need at least 10 helpers in canteen throughout the day.

To keep our canteen functioning the way it is we do need more volunteers.  Volunteering can be for just an hour, it does not have to be the whole day or even half a day.  Please leave your name and contact details with the office if you are in some way able to support our canteen in the form of food preparation, serving during the breaks or even washing the dishes.

School Council

Later today we will be finalising our School Council for 2017.  Voting closes at 4.00pm today.  Our 2017 School Council will meet for the first time this coming Monday.  If anyone is interested in being part of a School Council Sub Committee (Finance, Education and Buildings & Grounds), please contact the school.

Peter Seddon

Acting Principal

SCHOOL COUNCIL

Dear School Community,

This is my last newsletter as school council president and I am excited that on this day votes will be counted in our biggest election for school council in a very long time! Our newly elected councillors will join the council next Monday night and new executive positions will be decided at that meeting. Although I remain on council for another year as part of my two-year term, I will not be standing for the school council president position.

It has been a year to remember as school council president!

The opportunity to work with three different principals has been amazing. We have been lucky at Mentone Park to have such high-quality leadership available to support us through this transition to our new principal starting next term. Particular thanks again to Peter Seddon as he leaves us soon.

The re-location of the kinder has also been exciting and it is great to see the collaboration between all the stakeholders begin and to be involved to advocate for Mentone Park Primary School. This re-location will be a fantastic outcome for the school and for our local community.

The finalisation and opening of the new Middle School learning area was another great development overseen by the school council. It has been exciting to see the school continue to evolve and respond to emerging research on student learning needs and effective teaching practice.

As well as these major outcomes, the council has continued to do the regular work such as; overseeing strategic direction through review of strategic planning; managing school budgets and finances; maintaining buildings, grounds and facilities; and reviewing and updating policies to reflect the needs of our school.

I would like to thank the councillors that have been committed and hardworking during my time as president. Due to the unusual circumstances, they have willingly attended longer and extra meetings and are always available for advice and support outside meeting times. So, Andrew Davis, Nicky Langhorne, Peter Olechnowicz, Lisa Grimsey, Maria Fakitopoulos, Scot Martin, Martin Walker, Mary Sampieri and Alison Lough – Thank you!!

Thank you also to all the other many parents and friends who commit their time and energy to making our school a better place. There are so many opportunities to support our school to do the best for our kids. No more obvious example of some of this work than the amazing fete that we will all experience this Saturday! The dedication and team work of many to bring this huge event together exemplifies our community.

I would also like to acknowledge the fantastic work of our teachers and staff. It has been a challenging year in many ways and they have always risen to the challenges and continued to improve the learning opportunities for our students. If you haven’t seen the recently released schools 2016 NAPLAN results yet, go to www.myschool.edu.au to see the amazing improvements we are experiencing thanks to their hard work. And of course, that is just a snapshot to demonstrate what our students are achieving. Particular thanks to Alison Lough and other teacher leaders who have stepped up to ensure consistency and to support our acting principals.

Finally, I would like to congratulate you all as parents and families. I am sure many of you chose to send your children to Mentone Park PS because it is a beautiful, community school. We have seen the strength of our community as we have met changes and challenges with resilience and positivity. We all know that life never stays the same and of course this is true of schools too. It has been a demonstration of the strength of our community that when there is uncertainty we respond with support, and trust that those making decisions are doing so with only the best outcomes for the students at the forefront of their minds. In complex organisations, governed by complex but important guidelines and policies, it is not possible to communicate the full scope of every decision. But that when there are questions and concerns they are generally raised respectfully is a credit to our community and an essential lesson for our students. I have appreciated every person that I have had an opportunity to communicate with over my time as president and love the passion that we all share for our great school.

Looking forward to a fantastic remainder of 2017 for Mentone Park Primary School!

Best wishes,

Fiona Longmuir

SCHOOL FETE

FETE MAP

SCHOOL PHOTOS MARCH 29TH

Wednesday March 29^th 

This year Schoolpix are taking our school photographs.

Payment can be made online through SchoolPix

Sibling Photo forms can be collected from the office.

GOOD FRIDAY APPEAL 2017

SATELLITE CLUB

FROM THE OFFICE

              

Dear Parents & Guardians,

Thank you to the families who have already returned their Student Enrolment Information Forms and other consent forms. This is a busy time of year for everyone and we really appreciate your assistance with returning documentation to both the office and to your child/ren’s teachers.

Please note all signed permission forms and any payment must be given directly to your child/ren’s teachers. This allows the teachers to check and mark off each child’s permission form and payment.  

Spare clothing
Please ensure that you pack extra underwear and clothing for your child/ren. Due to OHS guidelines, we are no longer allowed to provide underwear.

Please feel free to phone or come into the office if you have any questions.

We are more than happy to assist with showing you how to use Qkr and tiqbiz .

Thank you

Administration Team

SCHOOL BANKING

PE

2017 Team Vic State selection process

Dear Parent/Guardian,

The following is to provide you with information about the School Sport Victoria Team Vic trials for 12 years and under teams in the sports of Australian Rules, Netball, Football (Soccer) and Basketball for 2017. To be eligible to participate in the trial process,

• students must be nominated and endorsed by their school initially
• each of these children needs to register online, if they wish to proceed.

Each school is only allowed a maximum of three (3) students for each sport mentioned above to attend these trials so it’s important that as a school, we acknowledge the capacity and ability of these nominated students to be able to participate well in these trials.  It needs to be emphasised that these trials form part of School Sport Victoria’s Gifted and Talented program and are not ‘come and try’ opportunities.  Each child is trialing for a State Team and as such we must attest to each child’s athleticism, skill level and school behaviour.

You are invited to register your child for selection to trial, if you so wish.  Please be aware that registration costs $25 per sport.  Please go to the following link to access the registration page and information https://www.ssv.vic.edu.au

Please be aware the Football (Soccer) and Basketball teams will participate at the same time at Pacific School Games so it is only possible to select one of these sports.

Parents if you have any questions please see Miss L.

Miss L

P.E. Teacher

OSHCLUB

SCHOOL UNIFORM

Year 5 & 6 Sports Tops are now available in store Retail Price $44.95

Working With Children Check Reminder

All parents/guardians, visitors & volunteers to the school MUST sign in & out of the school and display their WWCC in a lanyard, which is available at the school office.

The Department of Education requires any person involved in an activity where children may be present to have a current WWCC or have supplied proof that they have applied for a WWCC with the Department of Justice. All schools are required to comply with the Working with Children Act 2005.

Volunteers are expected to carry the WWCC card on their person at all times when working or volunteering at the school or during school related activities.

There is no fee for this check. Apply now by visiting: www.workingwithchildren.vic.gov.au

COMMUNITY SERVICE & ANNOUNCEMENTS

The Department of Education & Early Childhood Development and Mentone Park Primary School do not endorse the products or services of any private advertiser. They accept no responsibility for accuracy of information contained in advertisements or claims made by them.