Newsletter #9 June 14th 2024
GHPS IS COMMITTED TO CHILD SAFETY
Learning Today. Leading Tomorrow.
Dear GHPS Families,
The school continues to be a hive of activity with arts, sports, inquiry, and wellbeing events, in addition to core teaching and learning programs.
I hope you are staying well with the onset of winter this past week.
Curriculum Day
Last Friday our teachers went to Elwood Primary as part of their professional practice day. We saw their readers workshop lesson in action.
The morning provided valuable professional learning reflection and discussion. I congratulate our dedicated staff for their ongoing commitment to their professional learning.
Student Achievement Reports
Twice a year, parents receive a written report which provides a teacher judgement against the Victorian achievement standards assigned as a score which reflects where each student is along the relevant learning continuum for all curriculum areas taught.
To gain consistency in the progression point achievement scores, teachers use three key forms of information: they share student work samples and moderate the skills demonstrated within that work, they review progress notes made throughout the semester and moderate these against standardised test scores. The semester report will indicate whether the student is working at the expected year level (a dot will be within a yellow band), or above or below the standard. A second dot will show where the student was when that curriculum area was last assessed for you to see how much growth has been made. More information on how to read the report is within the report itself.
Our teachers are busy preparing student reports and I thank all of our teaching staff greatly for their hard work and time in working towards completing these. Student reports are due to be released to parents and carers on Compass in the final week of this term – Friday June 28.
Attitudes to School Survey
Over the past two weeks, Mr White and myself have been administering the annual Student Attitudes to School Survey for all students in Years 4 to 6.
This survey is a valuable tool that helps us gain insights into student perceptions about their school, learning, peer relationships, health and wellbeing, and life in general.
We look forward to understanding more about our students’ experiences and using this feedback to enhance their learning environment.
Student Well Being
Over this term our school has engaged with Christy Vryonis, an Inclusion Outreach Coach. Christy along with Mr. White and the senior teachers have been conducting focus group workshops with our 4,5, and 6 students discussing they like about school, respect, safety, relationships with their peers and staff, bullying and resilience.
These focus groups have provided a forum for our students to have a voice and be heard. We are now in the process of formulating an action plan based on our students’ responses.
It is my goal that at GHPS we value student voice and respond to our students needs to improve their learning environment.
Staffing
Mr. Jacobs will be leaving GHPS today and moving to Indonesia with his family. Mr Jacobs is taking up a position at an international school.
We wish Mr Jacobs and his family all the best on his move and appointment.
I’m excited to announce that Mr. Stuart MacDermid will be joining our school to teach 6A. Mr MacDermid is an experienced educator who has taught at Hampton and Frankston Heights Primary.
We have put plans in place to ensure a smooth transition for the class with a thorough handover.
2025 Foundation Enrolments
2025 Foundation enrolments are now open. We have held a number of well attended tours this term. The next scheduled tour will take place on Tuesday18th June.
If you are aware of any families that are seeking a school for next year, please direct them to our website for information about these events and the enrolment process.
FAMILY SUPPORT
There has been a lot of information in the media recently about the cost of living and the difficult times that many people are facing with interest rate rises etc.
If you or someone you know is having a hard time, please know that we have access to some great support services, including our community kitchen.
Nobody in our community should feel isolated or embarrassed to ask for help.
It is highly confidential so please do not hesitate to reach out to me should your family need any assistance, in any way.
Upcoming Working Bee
Join Us for a Community Working Bee on Sunday, 23rd June 9am to 11.30am
We are excited to invite you to our upcoming School Working Bee, a fantastic opportunity for our school community to come together and enhance our school grounds. This event will take place on Sunday, 23rd June, starting at 9am and we hope to see many of you there!
Thanks to the generous donation from Glen Eira Council, we will be receiving over 60 native trees! These trees will be planted across both school campuses, contributing to a greener and more beautiful environment for our students. But that’s not all—there’s plenty to do, and we need your help! Other tasks on the day include improvements to the chicken shed, spreading mulch, weeding and general tidying up of the school grounds.
The working bee is a great way to build community Spirit and to meet other parents and families, strengthening our school community.
Wishing you all a wonderful fortnight ahead and hoping that your family is avoiding all the bugs that appear to be going around at the moment. Stay Warm!
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today.” Malcolm X
Nerida Burns Cameron White
Congratulations to the following students who received a ‘Student of the Week’ award.
Abigail 0A – For her determination when creating a symmetrical picture using 2D shapes. Great job!
Olivia 0A – For her persistence during numeracy this week, it was great to see you trying your hardest to write number sentences.
Maisie 0A – For always helping others when needed. It has been great to see you guiding your peers to help them draw detailed pictures!
Frankie 0B – For showing our school values of pride and teamwork in our classroom this week. Your willingness to always go above and beyond to support your friends, whether helping them tidy up rubbish, push-in chairs, or even picking up fallen bags, is magnificent. Keep being a helpful hero!
Saavi 0C – For your continuous effort and persistence when completing independent tasks. You have been approaching all your work with a ‘can do’ attitude and you should be extremely proud of yourself. Amazing effort!
Hazel 0C – For writing your class retell about the story ‘Mr McGee Goes to Sea’. You drew a wonderful story map and then had a go at writing difficult words such as ‘worried’. I was so proud when you crossed out your mistakes and kept going. Keep up the great work!
Taylor 0C – For representing G.H.P.S so well when we visited Chesterfield Farm. You demonstrated curiosity and listened intently to the instructors. I loved seeing your bravery when you patted the cow and fed the animals. Great work!
Albert 1A – For being a respectful and kind class member. You always have such beautiful manners and bring a warm smile into our classroom!
Kai 1A – For being a super star during our excursion to Science works this week. You showed respect by waiting patiently in line for the different activities. Well done, Kai!
Amelia 1A – For your fantastic information report about the temperature. It was very informative and you used words like meteorolgist, thermometer and degress celcius. You are a wonderful writer, Mimi!
Hugo 1A – For your fantastic shop keeping skills in our maths lesson yesterday. You were able to calculate how much change your classmates would get after buying groceries from our grocery shop. Well done superstar!
Hera 1B – For being a rockstar friend this week! Your dedication to showing respect and support to our new classmates is nothing short of legendary. You’ve been the ultimate buddy, making sure everyone feels like they’ve found their second home here. Kudos to you for being the sunshine in someone else’s day!
Sarang 1B – This week, you’ve been a handwriting wizard, casting spells with your pen and paper! Your dedication and excitement to show off your handwriting skills have been absolutely magical. I’m super-duper impressed with your progress! Keep up the awesome work, superstar!
Diya 1B – For showing our values of pride and creativity! Your information report on temperature was absolutely stellar, showcasing not just one, not two, but three awesome subheadings! How awesome is that?! Keep up the fantastic work, Diya!
Henry 2A – For your remarkable researching skills this week during Literacy Groups. I loved the way you chose a topic that was new to you and how you found 7 interesting facts! Keep up the great work!
Rishan 2B – For the confidence he has shown when telling time using quarter past and quarter to on an analogue clock. It has been great to see your curiosity and enjoyment during these Maths lessons!
David 3A – For your fantastic narrative writing piece. You used juicy words, great punctuation, and correct use of paragraphs. Keep up the magnificent work!
Louisa 3A – For always being a sublime helper in the classroom and producing work to the highest standard. You are a superstar!
Ruby 3A – For your fabulous story titled ‘The yellow eye curse’. You had paragraphs, speech marks, a problem and a solution. Keep up the spectacular work!
Tharan 3B – For writing an impressive narrative about space, using correct punctuation when using dialogue and including some juicy words to bump up his writing. Keep up the awesome work!
Iris 3B – For the initiative and confidence she brings to all our maths lessons. She has demonstrated a great understanding of unit fractions beyond fifths, modelling and representing them to show the equal parts. Well done!
Chintan 3B – For the awesome reading connections he made during Literacy Groups this week. He made text to self and text to world connections when reading our text about Firefighters. Great thinking, keep it up!
Pranav 3C – For your outstanding predictions made during Literacy Circles. You confidently shared your thinking with the group and used supporting evidence to justify your thoughts. Well done, superstar reader!
Tasha 3C – For your outstanding speaking and listening skills. During whole class discussions, you listen attentively and ask questions confidently. In Literature circles, you are respectful and inclusive of everyone and always try to dig deep when discussing texts. Fabulous accomplishments, Tasha!
Mani 3C – For always trying his hardest and helping others. He was determined to improve his fraction knowledge, made excellent connections during Literacy, and was a great helper in the library. Well done for all of your efforts, Manny. They didn’t go unnoticed!
Elsie 4A – For your fantastic report about the MCG in your homework task. You took care to include lots of detail and even added some photos to enhance your presentation. What a superstar!
Audrey 4A – For your outstanding effort in Numeracy this semester. Your hard work is reflected in your assessment results, as well as your confidence, in the last couple of weeks. You should be very proud of yourself!
Dhruva 4C – For showing organisation and pride in his book keeping skills, reliability as a classroom messenger and expressing his feelings confidently about various topics. Well Done!
Harvey 5B – For his outstanding dedication to supporting and helping others at our school. Your selfless and compassionate nature has not gone unnoticed! Thank you for always going above and beyond!
Tanmayee 5B – For her expressive reading displayed this week during Literature Circles. Thank you for brings stories to life with flair, infusing characters with personality and adventures with excitement. Each week you enchant your group and teacher when it is your turn to read. Well done!
Emma 4C – For wonderfully fluent and clear reading during our Literature Circle rotations and using many complex descriptive words when writing about Pegasus during our Myths and Legends Unit. Well Done!
Layla 4B – For spreading joy daily and infusing energy to all members of our class! We will miss your smile, bubble personality and funny comments! Wishing you all the best at your new school!
Daniel 5C – For outstanding contributions during our cooking session, kindness and support of our new student and writing a detailed description about Cerberus during our Myths and Legends unit.
Ayush 6A – Being a pleasure to teach throughout the year. Your input into our class has been super special and we will definitely miss your sneaky smile. Best of luck for the future.
Vandita 6A – For being a most amazing and valuable member of 6A 2024. Your work habits and effort do not go unrecognised in our special community. We will surely miss you and wish you every success in the future.
Shenaya 6A – For your non-stop effort and dedication shown to all your work, in your laid back and super chilled style. Honestly, it’s the same every week. What an all-round star. Also, your fluffy ball pen is a real winner, and your date changing abilities are unrivalled! Congratulations, Shenaya!
GHPS Facebook
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Calendar
TERM 2
June
Fri 21 State Schools Relief Lunch
Fri 28 End of Term 2 (Early finish 2.30pm)
TERM 3
July
Mon 15 Term 3 commences
Fee payments and Excursion Permissions and Payments.
All Communication notices regarding excursions will be sent through COMPASS.
Permissions are to be given through COMPASS.
Preferred payment method for Fee payments and Excursions is through COMPASS.
This will allow us to always keep all the correct information available to staff whilst on an excursion.
If you have any questions, please contact the office or see Guide below.
CLICK HERE for Parent’s Guide to Compass
Thank you.