Newsletter – Week 6 Term 1, 2024 – Administration Message (NAPLAN, Kiss&Drive, Clean Up Aust Day), School Board Nominations, Outside of School Hours Care, Faction Swimming Carnival, Canteen News, P&C Welcome Picnic, UWA Hockey Club

Dear parents/caregivers, 

It’s hard to believe we’re more than halfway through the term with Easter holidays just weeks away. I trust you all had a well-deserved long weekend and used the opportunity to recharge at the mid-term point. Thankfully the extreme lingering heat of Bunuru (second summer season) has passed for now. One of the most heartening aspects of the past few weeks has been the resilience and adaptability shown by our students, despite the sweltering temperatures. Their eagerness to learn and grow has been truly inspiring.  

NAPLAN: Next week our Year 3 and 5 students will begin to participate in NAPLAN testing. Keeping normal routines in place, being on time to school, packing healthy food and snacks, and avoiding undue attention on the tests is suggested. These assessments are a snapshot in time and the move to earlier in the year will hopefully see the school receive these results sooner so teaching and learning can continue to be targeted to student needs. 

The testing timetable is as follows: 

Each day, NAPLAN Coordinator Miss Jemma Bryan will also conduct any catch-up testing as needed. All testing must be completed by Monday 25 March so if your child is away towards the end of the testing period, this may impact their ability to participate in all assessments. Importantly, NAPLAN results do not define a student, your children have an amazing array of talents which NAPLAN can’t measure.   

Kiss and Drive:  

We have a huge student population at Wembley and this can cause some traffic congestion around the school at drop off and pick up. I encourage families to consider walking, riding or scooting wherever possible to promote active, healthy travel for our students, particularly while the weather is good. It can be necessary to travel by car to school and we have Kiss and Drive bays on both Simper St and a small area on Alexander St. We have a Kiss and Drive brochure on the school website here for those who need a refresher or are unfamiliar with how to navigate the Kiss and Drive. These handy hints help the Kiss and Drive flow and ensure student safety. The rangers from the Town of Cambridge will be targeting Wembley Primary school and I have been warned they will begin to hand our infringements to community members.  

Our main aim is to keep our students safe and prevent any accidents occurring; 

• Move as near to the front of the Kiss & Drive bays as possible 
• Always be courteous to other road users 
• Parents and carers should stay in the car 
• Children will wait in the area adjacent to the Kiss & Drive bays 
• Bays to be used only for set down and pick up of students 
• If your child is not ready, don’t stop – drive up to the roundabout on Alexander or south down Simper Street, drive around the block and back to the Kiss & Drive, re-joining the queue 
• There is no parking permitted in the Kiss & Drive bays 
• Always indicate to enter and leave the Kiss & Drive bays 
• Ensure children entering the vehicle put on their seat restraint quickly before moving off 
• Always move forward to the top bay to prevent queues forming 

 

Clean Up Australia Day  

Today our Wembley Primary school Eco Warriors led the Clean Up Australia Day initiative. Students were out with their gloves and tongs collecting rubbish around the school. The focus was as much on preventing rubbish entering our environment as it is removing what has already accumulated.  The focus in the classrooms was around practical solutions to help us all live more sustainably every day of the year. We are very fortunate to have our Teacher leaders Mrs Kate McWilliams and Miss Jessica Stacey led our student leaders in this important initiative.  

Yours in learning, 

Milani, Natalie, Jemma and Lisa