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)
WELCOME BACK Welcome back to everyone and I trust that families found time to spend together during the recent break. The weather was what we would expect during winter, of course, but I’m sure everyone found lots to keep them entertained. The ball may not have run as far on the golf course due to softer ground (or in my case lack of ability!), but I found time for a few rounds of golf, late nights with the cricket, the delights of Daylesford and time at the beach which is still lovely during winter. Even now the days are lengthening and before we know it spring will be upon us. Before then, we have lots of activities to accompany the normal school program during Term 3 including Family Life programs, Book Week activities, the dance program, interschool sporting activities, chess tournaments, 100 days of school celebrations for the Foundation students and the 2024 transition program commencement for our next year enrollees. Busy times!
STATE CROSS COUNTRY Hearty congratulations to Joshua Cadusch who today competed at the State Cross Country Championships at Yarra Glen. This is the second consecutive year that Joshua has made it to State Level, and I wish to convey on behalf of the school community how proud we are of Joshua. I am happy to report that Joshua placed 8th in the event which is a mighty effort.
DANCE PROGRAM Our students have this week commenced a ten week dance program with Stomp Dance which will culminate in matinee performances in the gymnasium for the whole school community during the last week of term. Further details on these will be provided in due course.
BUILDING PROGRESS There have been a few landmarks reached over the last few weeks and much progress made on our building program. The Grade 3 and 4 classrooms were officially handed over on June 30, and this week and next will be set aside to steadily move furniture into the rooms before students officially occupy these from July 24. Whilst the building program continues, there will be a few logistical problems to navigate, not least of which will be accessing that area. Students will meet near the Grade 4-6 playground or Tiger Turf at the start of the day and end of breaks to be safely escorted across to the Grade 3 and 4 hub each day. There is a dedicated toilet block up there as well, but until the builders compound is finally dismantled in late December, the only pedestrian access to the Grade 3 and 4 hub will be from the northern end of Nevin Parade. Down the southern end of the school grounds, steps have finally been installed connecting the covered way path to the Grade 2 classrooms (access to these soon!), and we have reclaimed some of our Grade Foundation and 1 playground. Our Art Room will relocate to the school owned portable (Mr Ruddock and Mr Betson’s classrooms) at the end of week 3, with sinks and troughs and lino installed, or being installed, as I write. You will have noticed our new Administration building is starting to take shape with steel and brickwork starting to add to the groundworks that have been completed. As always, we will try and keep you as informed as possible – six months to go, but it will all be worth it in the end.
STAFFING We welcome Darren Peters to Viewbank PS to replace Tara Sawyer who took up a new position at Macclesfield PS. We hope that Darren’s stay with us is a long and productive one. We also officially welcome Melissa Enticott and Kirtley Searies who join our Education Support team with the same sentiments for a long and successful time with us.
Enjoy the rest of the week, and I trust the three way conferences were valuable on Monday.
Kind regards,
Bill Kersing
Principal
Welcome Back Welcome back to Term 3! I hope you had a great break.
3 Way Conferences We were very impressed with the quality of work presented by your children at their 3 Way Conference on Monday. Thank you to the staff for supporting the students in the lead up to the day. This enabled your children to showcase their learning and to identify areas to work on in the future. Sometimes there are further areas that may need to be discussed. Please contact your child’s teacher (classroom or specialist) to arrange another time.
First Aid and Asthma Student illness is continuing to have an impact on student learning. It is extremely important that we have the most up-to-date information from you. If there have been any changes to your child’s Asthma Action Plan (or any other illness / medical management required at school), please ensure that this is communicated to the school as soon as possible - including any contact phone number changes.
Staff Absences Currently (without ‘jinxing’ things!), staff illness has fortunately been low. That said, as Winter settled in, I am sure you know of someone who has been ill and thought they would only be sick for a day or 2. Over a week later, they are still sick! When staff are absent, we try and get the same Casual Relief Teacher (CRT) to take the class to ensure a level of continuity. This can be difficult to achieve if illness extends beyond what was initially thought. Also, many CRTs only work on certain days that fit into their lifestyle and home requirements. If a staff member ends up being absent due to illness for a number of days, it is never our intention to have a different CRT each day in that class, but it cannot always be helped.
Like every other job, staff at Viewbank Primary School who have met eligibility requirements are able to access Long Service Leave. We try and book the same CRT for the duration of the staff member’s leave (once again, not always possible). As Long Service Leave is booked for a defined period, the period of leave and who the replacement is, is normally communicated to you by the class teacher.
Upcoming changes to NAPLAN reporting Ahead of NAPLAN results for students being released in the coming weeks, we are letting you know of some changes to this year’s reporting. These are changes being introduced nationally by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA).
NAPLAN will continue to measure student achievement in Numeracy, Reading, Writing, Spelling, and Grammar and Punctuation but the results will now be presented in 4 proficiency levels:
These are:
- exceeding
- strong
- developing
- needs additional support.
This change will give schools, parents and carers clearer information that details student achievement against new proficiency levels.
Students’ NAPLAN reports will continue to show how they are tracking against their peers and provide an indication of their skill levels against national averages and where we would expect them to be in order to get the most out of schooling. This provides valuable information to teachers about how we can continue to support your child.
Each set of NAPLAN results is an important milestone but it is also important that students know that one result does not define them – these results are about making sure every student gets the support they need so they can continue to get the best from their learning.
When we provide you with your results, you will also receive information about what the new proficiency levels mean.
You can find more information here:
https://www.nap.edu.au/ and https://www.nap.edu.au/naplan/results-and-reports
Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD) Every year, all schools in Australia participate in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). The NCCD process requires schools to identify information already available in the school about supports provided to students with disability. These relate to legislative requirements under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and the Disability Standards for Education 2005, in line with the NCCD guidelines (2019). Since 2018, the NCCD has been used by the Australian Government to inform aspects of funding for schools, known as the ‘student with disability loading’.
Information provided about students to the Australian Government for the NCCD includes:
- year of schooling
- category of disability: physical, cognitive, sensory or social/emotional
- level of adjustment provided: support provided within quality differentiated teaching practice, supplementary, substantial or extensive.
In our context at Viewbank Primary School, students will be included in the NCCD process if they have (amongst other things) evidence of an Individual Education Plan (IEP) in 2022 or 2023, notes from parent teacher interviews or emails that outline adjustments in the classroom, participation in Literacy and/or Numeracy support classes, had an educational assessment (cognitive, hearing, speech etc) that outlines particular strategies that need to be implemented, the school receives funding for a students under the Program for Students with Disabilities, etc.
This information assists schools to:
- formally recognise the supports and adjustments provided to students with disability in schools
- consider how they can strengthen the support of students with disability in schools
- develop shared practices so that they can review their learning programs in order to improve educational outcomes for students with disability.
The NCCD provides state and federal governments with the information they need to plan more broadly for the support of students with disability.
The NCCD will have no direct impact on your child and your child will not be involved in any testing process. The school will provide data to the Australian Government in such a way that no individual student will be able to be identified – the privacy and confidentiality of all students is ensured. All information is protected by privacy laws that regulate the collection, storage and disclosure of personal information. To find out more about these matters, please refer to the Australian Government’s Privacy Policy (https://www.dese.gov.au/about-us/resources/department-education-skills-and-employment-complete-privacy-policy-0).
Further information about the NCCD can be found on the NCCD Portal (https://www.nccd.edu.au).
If you have any questions about the NCCD, please contact the school.
Have a great weekend,
Patrick
Welcome back to term 3. I hope you were able to have an enjoyable and restful holiday break.
This term is certainly shaping up to be busy with weekly Stomp dance lessons for all students, our grade 3 and 4 classes moving north to their new rooms and our art room being reinstated in the school owned portable in the coming weeks, and our 2024 Foundation transition sessions beginning. Book Week will be celebrated across the school in Week 7 (21-25 August) so start thinking about those Book Week costumes ready for our whole school parade. A range of excursions and sporting activities are also planned for various year levels.
I hope families enjoyed the opportunity to share in their child’s learning journey during the 3-Way Conferences on Monday. The students were certainly eager to showcase their achievements and share their goals.
Have a great week.
Gill
TERM 3 EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITY CHARGES AND PERMISSIONS We would like to inform you that the charges for Term 3 extra-curricular activities have been uploaded on Compass. Please note that all permissions and payments are now overdue. These activities have been designed to enrich and diversify the educational experience of our students. Kindly note that these activities are offered on a user-pays basis.
For families facing financial challenges, we can arrange a flexible payment plan for extra-curricular activities to suit your needs.
Please reach out to me directly for a confidential discussion, and we will work together to explore alternative arrangements.
Kind regards,
Lucy Addati
THANK YOU MCDERMOTT FAMILY A huge thanks to the McDermott Family for taking care of our Spiney Leaf insects over the holidays. We really appreciate you looking after them. It sounds like it was a very eventful holiday for them, and a big lesson in life cycles for your family
THANK YOU to the Lai family. The STEM team would also like to say a big thank you to the Lai family for looking after of our mealworms. The students have really loved seeing the new pupas and our beautiful beetle! We hope you enjoyed taking care of them and we really appreciate you helping us over the holidays.
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. There are other activities planned for that week including visiting Author sessions on Thursday 24th August.
Further details will the sent out in the next few weeks.
Book Club Issue 5 brochures will be sent home. Online ordering through LOOP will close on Thursday 27TH July.
What a week the Year 4 students have had in both the Kitchen and the Garden!
Our students have enjoyed harvesting fresh produce and cooking up a wonderful meal that we thoroughly enjoyed. This has inspired many to follow this link http://www.viewbankps.vic.edu.au/stephanie-alexander to recreate the food we made to share with family and friends at home.
If you too would like to see the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden recipes please click on the link above.
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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 20th July (Orders closing on 17th July, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 27th July (Orders closing on 24th July, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 3rd August (Orders closing on 31st July, 3:00pm)
- 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
Dear Parents and Carers,
TheirCare has exciting news to announce about the Australian Government changes to the Child Care Subsidy (CCS), for your Outside School Hours Care Service.
From July 10th families who were previously not eligible to claim the CCS due to income limits, may now be eligible. In addition, most families who use or wish to use the OSHC Service provided by TheirCare, will save money.
Learn more by opening reviewing the Fact Sheet Document.
Please reach out to TheirCare’s friendly Customer Support Team if you have any questions on 1300 072 410.
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