Newsletter – Week 9, Term 2, 2022 – Message from Admin Team, Interschool Cross Country, Lightening Carnival, Canteen, Celebrating Success, CSHS Tour, Before School Soccer with Mark Lee, Young Engineers, UWA West Coast Swimming Squads – Come and Try

Message from the Executive Administration Team

Dear parents and caregivers

We are almost at the end of Semester 1, with the final day of term next Friday 1 July. It has been highly challenging at times but throughout it all, we have maintained strong teaching and learning programs in the classroom, reinstated many school events such as assemblies, cross country, fundraisers such as the Paint and Pinot and Quiz Night and welcomed parents back into classrooms.

Thanks to your support, our students have coped with all the disruptions with such resilience and we should all feel very proud of the way they continue to engage at school with positivity and determination. I’m sure we have all had our moments over the past few months but we’ve mostly come out the other side smiling and supportive. To weather challenges ahead, we need to continue to do so, in partnership as a community. If an issue arises, I encourage you to consult our Talking with My School policy which steps out who to approach should you or your child need support or information clarified. I also thank the many parents who often send in positive feedback to Admin or teachers. It always makes our day to hear about the progress or celebrations. We remain committed to working with you because a strong home-school partnership is vital to your child’s development.

We have many families who are planning to travel interstate or overseas in the next few weeks. With the border restrictions relaxed and some families being separated for almost 3 years, we understand that many of you are taking the opportunity to make plans. Please continue to advise the school and your child’s teachers of the dates. While in-term vacations are discouraged to avoid further disruptions to student learning, we acknowledge these are particularly unique circumstances. We wish all our families a relaxing holiday break, whether you are remaining in WA or going further afield.

Interschool Cross Country:

Congratulations to our Interschool Cross Country team who were awarded Champion School at the City Beach Invitational Cross Country event last week for the 11^th year in a row! Outstanding team effort by all involved with some exceptional individual performances by Sansa T in Year 6, Mitchell P in Year 6, Noah T in Year 6, and Leo V in Year 4. The Year 6 girls were unbelievable in the final race of the day, taking out 4 places in the top 6.  Every single runner contributed to the shield being retained for another year and we are very proud of their efforts.  Students trained before school for weeks leading up to the event showing such dedication and determination. Thank you to Mr Bowman and Mrs Watson for guiding our students and providing the team with their expert coaching.

Teaching and Learning

Year 2 Zoo Excursion:

Today, our Year 2 students are having a wonderful day out at Perth Zoo for their first excursion of the year. There was lots of excitement as they boarded the bus, ready for a day of adventure. Our Year 2s are learning all about animal classifications and conservation as part of their Biological Science unit so have spent the day engaging in lots of fun activities and observations about different animals and creatures they encounter.

We had lots of parent helpers attend today which is wonderful and we thank our volunteers for their time. I’m sure you enjoyed the day as much as the students did. There will be lots of tired little (and big!) bodies this evening. We are so glad that we can resume excursions again after the disruptions caused by the pandemic. They provide rich learning experiences for our students to build on when back in the classroom and plenty of wonderful memories. Thanks to the entire Year 2 teaching team who organised today’s excursion.

Community Engagement

Parent volunteers:

We are so lucky to have many parents who partner with our school to connect our community and give back to the school when they can. Whether it be through a formal role on the P&C, as a general P&C member, class volunteering, focus groups, the school canteen, School Board or in other ways, we just couldn’t do it without your help. Your involvement contributes to our positive community culture, which is all about making our school the best possible learning environment for your children.

Over the past few years, one parent in particular has been quietly volunteering her time and expertise in graphic design. Trish Davies works her magic on all our policy documents and other formal reports such as the Annual Report to look professional, easy to read and visual with a consistent look. Each policy also features the wonderful painting, generously donated by former WPS parent and artist Shannon Hamilton, which is proudly displayed in the reception area of the school. We have been slowly updating the format of our policies over the past few years through a structured policy review cycle managed through the School Board. Thank you Trish, your time and service to the school is very much appreciated. You can find our policies on the school website here.

We return to school for the first day of Term 3 on Monday 18 July.

‘Collaborate, Connect, Communicate and Care’.

Yours in learning

The Senior Leadership Team

Tamara, Milani, Rachel, Stacey and Natalie