GHPS IS COMMITTED TO CHILD SAFETY

    Learning Today,                     Leading Tomorrow.                                                             

Principal’s Report

Welcome Ms Carly Draper to 1E

This week the students, staff and families welcomed Ms Carly Draper to 1E when we were unexpectedly notified at the school that the teacher who was appointed was no longer able to accept the position. After being unable to relocate housing, she has made the difficult decision to not commence her teaching at GHPS. Ms Carly Draper who is well known at GHPS will be taking 1E till the end of this term while we advertise the position once again. We have apologised to 1E for this late change, however we are highly optimistic that the students will enjoy learning with Ms Draper and we will keep you informed. Please join me in welcoming Ms Draper and we thank her very much for teaching 1E at such short notice. We will notify you once a teaching appointment has been made and if there are any further queries, please contact me in the Office.

Education Week: Connecting Communities

Please join us in celebrating Education Week.

On Tuesday 25 May between 5-6pm we will be having our open night. Families are invited to come and see their child’s classroom and explore other classrooms around the school.

 Wednesday 26 May from 8- 8.45am on the WEST SITE: Theircare and GHPS staff will like to welcome you to this year’s Community Breakfast. Theircare will provide a free menu of scrumptious breakfast delights. We encourage families to bring their own plates, bowls, and spoons if you intend to come. There will be a coffee cart selling coffee for $4 to keep you supplied with this early morning fave.

Following the breakfast our classrooms will be open from 9- 10am to families which maybe your preference if you are unable to attend open night.

Thank you to GPA who notified families of the new time later in the year for the Morning Tea and the new idea for Grandparents and Special Persons’ morning tea.

We look forward to celebrating Education Week with you and showcasing the wonderful learning and work across the school.

School Review

Last week the Review Panel reconvened for the final day at GHPS. The Reviewer is in the process of finalizing the Report which is then submitted to DET to be signed off, before coming back to the school. The Panel reviewed the school’s processes to identify the extent to which the school had met the Goals and Targets and where to develop the roadmap for the next four years 2021- 2024. Thank you to the Staff, Leadership team, students, School Council President and parents who participated so enthusiastically in the critical areas of focus. There was a huge amount of work to gather evidence to support performance and practice. We will continue to drive improvement across all areas and continue to create a learning environment that engages students in purposeful and meaningful learning.

Important Cultural Significant Dates

The school wishes to acknowledge these important dates which may be included in discussions and lessons across the school where they are a focus in the appropriate Curriculum levels.

• 26 May National Sorry Day

National Sorry Day provides an opportunity for people to come together and share the journey towards healing for the Stolen Generations, their families and communities.

• 27 May 1967 Referendum

The 1967 Referendum was a landmark achievement following decades of activism by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous people, where more than 90 percent of Australians voted in favour of amending two sections of the Australian Constitution.

• 27 May– 3 June National Reconciliation Week

National Reconciliation Week celebrations commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey-the anniversaries of the successful 1967 Referendum and the High Court Mabo Decision.

Woolworths Glen Huntly

A fun morning was had on Tuesday 11 May when Sarah who is the Group Manager at Woolworths and her team greeted our students with a piece of free fruit.  Looking the part they were dressed as fruit and they brought a smile to us all. Many thanks!

Book Fair 

Great work to the Book Fair Team and what energy they displayed to get the Book Fair setup, open and running before and after school this week! Thanks to everyone who’s volunteered to help Ms Juz de Bruyn, Ms Marie Kasambalis, Ms Amy Tinetti and your cash register crew Ruth, Mrs Shannan Fox, Ms Claire Piscioneri, Ms Amandine Lucas Lely, Mrs Mandy Zent and Ms Julie Bruce!

Such a fun experience for the students and families to enjoy.

School Council Report

The school council met following the 28 April Annual Reporting Meeting. I thank the school council president, Ross Donnan for his report which is included in this newsletter.

I can reiterate Ross Donnan’s sentiments in reference to the big step that Ms Julie Bruce will take at the end of term 2 in retiring in her role as Business Manager at GHPS.

After commencing at GHPS in 1988 as an Integration Aide 33 years ago, Julie has been a power of work in both supporting Principal, Assistant principal and classroom teachers as an Aide and for as long as I can remember, then in the main office as Business Manager doing a huge job.

Together with the School Council, staff and students we will be planning a farewell “Julie style” and will let you know the details as they become finalized.

The School Council will next meet on Monday 7 June.

Libby Alessi       Principal

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School Council President’s Report

Hello all, the year is flying by already! Almost halfway which is hard to believe.

The new School council met for our first 2021 meeting on Wednesday 28 April. The first part of this meeting included our Annual General Report.

Annual General Reporting meeting

Thank you to those engaged parents/guardians who attended our Annual General Reporting. This meeting is required by the education department to be held once a year and is an opportunity for the School to report on the highlights of the year. Some of those highlights included

• School is trending in a positive direction for parent satisfaction and the staff survey. Please feel free to let us know if there are any issues on the school that you aren’t happy with or feel could be improved. With your feedback we can make our School even greater!
• $7.1 million dollars from the State Member for Oakleigh, Steve Dimopoulous MP for capital works upgrades which are schedule to begin in the coming months.

School Council Meeting

This was our first official meeting with the new councilors on Council. I have to shout out to each and every one of them who give up their valuable time and contribute to the workings of the School. I am very appreciative. The School Council sub-committee membership was finalised. Some of the items discussed included;

• School strategic review is almost complete and the results will form the foundation of our School Strategy for the coming years. Well done to all involved including our challenge partners from other schools who joined in on the process.
• The School finances are in great shape, thanks to the tireless work of Julie Bruce (our business manager).
• The School has obtained 2 barbeques, one purchased at cost price and the other donated by the SITRO Group in Mount Waverley (suppliers of gasmate BBQs). A big shout out to Noel Duffy for assisting with this!
• Working bees (Friday afternoons for an hour) are starting up again soon so keep an eye out for notifications and notices about dates. They are a great way to meet other parents and a BBQ will be provided after the hour of power!

GPA – A great result from Mother’s Day

Thank you to those parents who generously donated their time to organise and work on the mother’s day stall. The children loved surprising their mothers on Sunday morning and the money raised on the day contributes to the GPA fundraising activities for the year and makes a big difference to the School.

 Update to capital works

The tender process to select a builder is progressing well and underway and it won’t be long before the administration works begin on the East Site. The School is working very hard to ensure there is minimal disruption to students and staff.

Enrolments

Mrs Alessi and Ms Tinetti have been busy showing prospective families around our wonderful School. Tours are very busy which is positive news for the school. Word of mouth is our best promotion tool, so please keep spreading the word about how great our school is.

Farewell to Julie Bruce

It is with both sadness and excitement to announce that Julie Bruce, the GHPS business manager will be retiring from GHPS at the end of Term 2 after 33 years at GHPS. Julie has been the face of the school for so many years and has had a huge positive impact on the School. Julie greets parents, oversees the school finances, and manages School business amongst a thousand other things that make such a difference to the staff and students. The School Council Finance sub-committee will definitely miss Julie and her detailed response to our multitude of questions each meeting! Stay tuned as the GPA will announce a farewell for Julie in the coming weeks to acknowledge her enormous contribution to GHPS.

School review

I was fortunate to participate one of the sessions of our School review. I was very impressed with the rigour that the Education Department places on every Victorian School to ensure we are continuously improving and enhancing student outcomes. Every member of our community should feel comfortable and pleased that GHPS is exceeding in many areas. Some areas we are exceeding in is Student wellbeing and a sense of connectiveness which GHPS achieved 91%. This is well above the state average of 79.2% which is a great result. This is a testament and evidence of a high performing teaching staff and senior leadership team. Keep up the great work!

I also wanted to thank the School Captains Emma Gracie and Marko Le for their wonderful speeches to the panel at the start of the first review day. They did a marvelous job and their passion for our School was so clear to see!

If there is any issue any member of the school community would like to raise with School Council, please email glenhuntly.ps@edumail.vic.gov.au or myself directly ross.donnan@education.vic.gov.au

Stay safe and well.

Ross Donnan,     School Council President

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A message from your Assistant Principal:

Wellbeing:

Practicing empathy and kindness:

Check out this amazing video that tracks an act of kindness throughout a single day. Kindness Boomerang – “One Day”.

After watching the video, pick three people from your contact list on your phone and send them a message or call them. Ask them how they are going and thank them for something they have done for you.

If you have some time, complete a random act of kindness for someone. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Offer your seat to someone else on a train/tram
• Let someone in, in a traffic jam
• Compliment someone genuinely
• Hold the door open for someone
• Smile at someone you don’t know
• Thank someone for helping you in the last few weeks

Interested in delving deeper into the research behind being kind? CLICK HERE!

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Congratulations to the following students who received a ‘Student of the Week’ award.

Nial 1E – for your great listening this week. You have worked so hard and been an excellent friend! Keep it up!

All of 1E – Thank you for a wonderful start to this year. You have worked so hard and showed so much growth in your learning. Keep it up!

Vibha 1M – for sharing your wonderful ideas with your partner in your fairy tale writing this week. Your confidence has grown so much this year!

Tengyi 3F – Outstanding 88 nights of home reading. Superstar!

Ishaan 3O – Sharing his knowledge in multiplication and  division during our Number Talks session this week.

Bonnie 3O – For staying focused and on task during our Naplan sessions this week. You had a positive attitude. Well done

Shiva 4N – For demonstrating great reading comprehension strategies using the Literature Circles roles in the last few weeks. Keep up the great work!

Max 4R – For being our resident coding expert and patiently helping others with their Scratch projects!

Elizabeth 4R – For writing an impressive Sizzling Start to your persuasive text using Show Don’t Tell and strong language. Great work!

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Sport News

Our students have been enjoying Hockey Training, provided by Sporting Schools.

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GHPS Students and Families raised $405.55 for this years Royal Children’s Hospital Good Friday Appeal.

Thank you to all who donated.

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Please remember to put your name on all uniform/property.

Lost property will be sorted every month and any uniform without a name will be put into the second hand uniform shop.

Other unnamed items will be donated to charity.

If your child attends before or after school care, please check their lost property as well.

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Calendar

May

24 – 28                Education Week

June

Mon 14               Queens Birthday Holiday

Fri 25                  Final Day Term 2  (early dismissal, 2.30pm)

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