Assistant Principal Report’s

150th Birthday Celebration

It’s been another wonderful, albeit wintery week at Williamstown North Primary school!

We’ve had our first 150^th Celebration planning meeting with lots of exciting ideas discussed and we encourage anyone that wants to be a part of the planning to email us at the school; we’d love to hear from you!

World Teachers Day

Friday the 27^th October is World Teachers Day and we thank our hard-working, dedicated group of teachers for all of their efforts.

Big Night In

We wish all the Year 1 & 2 students all the best for their Big Night In tomorrow and a huge thank you to the teachers for all the effort and planning that goes into running such a fun event.

Grade Structure

As the process of creating grades for 2024 continues, we continue to seek community input into grade composition.

This week, students will be asked to choose 5 learning buddies of whom they would like to have at least one in their 2024 class. Learning buddies will not only be a great friend but also encourage and be supportive of classroom learning. Please discuss with your children the importance of choosing leaning buddies that match these criteria and have conversations with your children in readiness for this and transitioning into new grades.

Parents/carers are also encouraged to please put in writing any requests for student placements based on social and academic relationships as well as previous experiences and we will endeavour to take these into consideration. These, along with any other concerns/feedback, must be sent to Richard via his email at Richard.buckingham@education.vic.gov.au no later than Friday 3^rd November.

Teachers will commence placing students into 2024 grades next week. This process will continue for the next fortnight, with teachers also seeking feedback from children’s Specialist and previous teachers, to create well-rounded 2024 classes.

We expect student placements to be communicated to students and parents by Friday 1^st December. This will allow plenty of time for any adjustments and for us to prepare children for the Statewide Transition Day on 12^th December.

Reports

Reports will be made available on Compass on Monday Week 11 which is the 11^th December giving families plenty of time to discuss any concerns and questions with classroom teachers. Please reach out via phone and/or email to book times with teachers for further discussions as needed.

Logo Redesign Competition

In 2024, Williamstown Primary school turns 150 years old! As part of the celebrations, we are looking to create a commemorative 150^th birthday logo to use for the year. And we want you to design it. Please see the flyer for more information.

Dates for your Diary

Please note the following dates and upcoming events, keeping in mind that Monday 6^th November is a whole school student free Curriculum Day and Tuesday the 7^th November is Melbourne Cup Public Holiday.

Thursday 2^nd November – Prep Spooky Pizza Party

Thursday 9^th November – Year 1 & 2 LUME Excursion

WNPS wearing it loud for kids with hearing loss - Loud Shirt Day

Thank you to all the children and staff that wore a loud shirt last Friday in support of Nextsense.

We would also like to thank the Cup Cake Queen for the donations to the school in support of the loudest shirt worn.

Have a lovely week, Shevani—Assistant Principal

WNPS 150th Anniversary Working Group

Williamstown North Primary School is turning 150 in 2024!

We are looking for members of our community to join a working group to plan for the activities celebrating our 150th Anniversary year.

We hope to involve a broad representation of current and past families and staff in the celebrations so please consider putting yourself forward for the working group.

To register your interest please visit

https://www.willynthps.vic.edu.au/activities-and-events/150th-year-celebrations

Specialist Awards & Loud Shirt Day

Thunderstorm Asthma – be prepared this pollen season

Grass pollen season, which typically runs from October to December each year in Victoria, brings an increase in asthma and hay fever symptoms. It also increases the risk of thunderstorm asthma. For people with asthma or hay fever, especially those who experience wheezing or coughing with their hay fever, thunderstorm asthma can be sudden, serious, and even life-threatening.

Williamstown North Primary will implement a range of measures to keep our school community safe as the risk of thunderstorm asthma increases.

Many of our staff are trained in asthma first aid, and we will monitor the VicEmergency app to receive thunderstorm warnings and, where appropriate, keep students indoors when weather forecasts identify greater risk.

During the season, there are some things you can do to prepare and protect yourself and your family:

· If your child has ever had asthma, talk to your doctor about what you can do to help protect them from the risk of thunderstorm asthma this pollen season, including updating your asthma action plan. Taking an asthma preventer properly and regularly is key to preventing asthma, including thunderstorm asthma.

· If your child has hay fever, see your pharmacist or doctor for a hay fever treatment plan and check if you should have an asthma reliever puffer. These are available from a pharmacy without a prescription.

· If your child has hay fever and experiences wheezing and coughing, it is important to ensure they don’t also have asthma. Speak to your doctor about an asthma action plan.

· Where possible, avoid being outside during thunderstorms from October to December, especially during the wind gusts that come before the storm. Go inside and close your doors and windows. If you have your air conditioning on, turn it to ‘recirculate.’

Protect yourself this pollen season – managing asthma and allergies matters.

For more information, speak to your doctor. You can also visit the Better Health Channel website.