“Education is teaching our children to desire the right things.” – Plato

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Last Thursday, it was our pleasure to have the Hon Natalie Hutchins, Minister for Education, visit our school, to look at our building construction site and a tour of our school. On her arrival, our school leaders presented the Minister with an OSPS scarf, which she immediately draped around her neck and a beanie. The minister was very interested in the activity the year 1’s were doing in the Digital Technologies room, the superb performance of a production number from the year 4 students as well as wandering in and out of classrooms asking students various questions. Her visit concluded with the Minister turning the first sod with our student leaders.

A huge congratulations to all the Year 4 students on their wonderful performances of ‘The X Factory’ last week. It was great to have our hall full of excited children and very, very proud parents and families once again. Thank you to everyone, both staff and parents who were involved in putting this show on. Well done everyone, should all be proud of your efforts. Now we can all look forward to the Year 6 production of Moana Jnr at the end of term 3.

The sound of building equipment and lots of banging are greeting us in the corridor each day as the builders are slowly demolishing the inside structure of the year 6 wing. It’s amazing to think that although we have made some small changes, everyone has adapted very well, and school goes on like nothing has changed.

Our value of ‘Resilience’ is shining through during these times!

I hope you all have a great week.

Ron
Principal

TERM DATES / QR CODE

SCHOOL MATTERS

CHILD SAFETY AT OAKLEIGH SOUTH PRIMARY SCHOOL

Child safety and wellbeing at Oakleigh South Primary School: information for families and the school community

The Victorian Government has announced new Child Safe Standards to further strengthen child safety across organisations, including schools. The new standards recognise the critical importance of families and the broader school community in maintaining and promoting child safety and wellbeing.

Oakleigh South Primary School has reviewed and updated our child safety policies and procedures to ensure they meet the requirements of the new standards. These are available to view on our school website.

We are committed to continuous improvement in our approach to child safety and wellbeing and welcome feedback from families and members of our school community on ways we can further strengthen our child safety policies, procedures and practices.

If you have any suggestions, comments or questions, please contact the school via email: oakleigh.south.ps@education.vic.gov.au

ILLNESS

It can be difficult for families to know when their child is sick enough to need to stay home from school. For safety’s sake, if your child seems unwell you should always keep them home from school and seek medical advice.

Families can experience problems when trying to take time off to care for an ill child at home. However, it is important that parents focus not only on the wellbeing of their own child, but also upon the wellbeing of other children and the staff. If you need to administer Panadol/Nurofen before school, then your child should not be at school.

If your child has vomited or had diarrhoea, they must be completely well for 24 hours before returning to school.

COVID-19 UPDATE  FACE MASKS IN SCHOOLS

It is strongly recommended by the Victorian Department of Health that face masks are worn in indoor settings, with face masks mandatory for those aged 8 and over who are household contacts and attending school. This is because the wearing of masks is effective in reducing the transmission of COVID-19.

What does this mean in practice for schools?

It is the department’s expectation that, through to the end of winter, students aged 8 and over and staff will wear masks when in class, except where removing a mask is necessary for clear communication or when a particular activity requires the removal of a mask.

Masks are not required to be worn outdoors but can be worn when physical distancing is not possible. This expectation should not constrain student participation in the full range of school activities, including music, sport and performances.

Wearing masks is a simple step we can all take this winter to reduce the number of COVID-19 cases and ensure our schools are as safe as possible.

A short letter is available below, signed by each of the 3 school sectors which explains the consistent expectation across all schools in Victoria this winter. You can access this by clicking on the link below.

Updated Face Mask Advice Parent Letter

RECYCLING BREAD BAGS

Did you know?

In Australia, only 18% of plastic packaging is recycled.

Our School is participating in the Wonder Recycling Rewards program.

Send along to your child’s teacher EMPTY bread bags, so they can be recycled and earn the school some sports equipment.

We need to collect 25kg of empty bread bags (any brand of bread bags), up until 9th September.

Start collecting now!

PREP ENROLMENTS FOR 2022

This year, the Department of Education have made some changes to the Prep Enrolment process and timeline, applications need to be submitted by 12th August, 2022.

Places are filling fast, so if you have a child starting in 2023 or if you know of any new families thinking of applying, please complete the Enrolment Forms and submit with the supporting documentation as soon as possible.

All places for Prep 2023 will be confirmed by 26th August, 2022, as per the new timeline.

Due to the COVID-19 restrictions, enrolments will only be accepted in digital form.

Enrolment forms are available on the website http://oakleighsouthps.vic.edu.au/enrolments/

SECOND HAND UNIFORM SHOP NEWS

OSPS branded scarves & beanies are again available for purchase in the 2nd hand uniform shop.

The beanies are $18 and scarves are $20.

The second hand uniform shop is open Wednesday and Friday from 8.45am – 9.15am.

STUDENT SHOWCASE

YEAR 6 BUSINESS EXPO

During term two, it was time for the Year 6 students to put their entrepreneurial hats on and work in groups to create their very own business!

They held business meetings and promoted their businesses via their very own websites! The project culminated in Business Expo day, when they all showcased their products and services.

Advertising and presentation had to be just right to entice customers to the stalls and thorough bookkeeping was necessary to track all of the transactions.

The Economics unit taught our Year 6s many skills they can take into the future and was a fun, hands on way to learn about the highs and lows of the business world.

LITERACY CORNER

Couch- ‘Ouch! Who do these disgusting humans think they are, wrinkling a pristine couch like me? And the company here, golly gosh… the only interesting object here is the TV. The cushions are so annoying, and they don’t even match my classy, designer print. Their stench is simply unbearable. Do they not dust their coats? Quite horrid if you ask me. They are so irrelevant. Only the TV can entertain me. Let’s not mention the humans that sit on me. Their foul bottoms need to stay away from me.’ Lucia 6FW

Cat- ‘A boot in the face, before a rough hand seized my neck and flung me out in the street. Now that is rejection. I caught a snippet of my previous owner’s sentence (“…and don’t come back here, you lazy, good for nothing cat!”) before the door slammed in my face. I meowed and scratched at the soft wood of the flimsy door but was ignored. I sat on the doorstep and meowed again. Nothing. Then the heavy clump-clump of footsteps drained near the entrance. “I’ll show that useless, flea infested creature…” I didn’t want to hear the rest. I sprang off the doorstep and rushed behind a nearby garbage bin, shaking in fear. The door opened and the handle of a broom poked out, before a non-committal grunt sounded and the door slammed again.’ Amber 6NM

RESILIENCE PROJECT

PREP GEM – THE RESILIENCE PROJECT

Preps have been participating in the Resilience Project Program and are off to a fantastic start!

We are practising gratitude, mindfulness, empathy and emotional literacy.

The students have been learning how to be mindful, using manners and how to be a good friend.

We have been exploring different examples on how to show gratitude by using manners such as “please and thank you”. Please enjoy some of Preps wonderful drawings below.

GEM AT OAKLEIGH SOUTH PRIMARY SCHOOL

The Year 6s have been hard at work but have also taken the time to pause and reflect during their last year at OSPS.

Gratitude (G)- We are grateful for the opportunities we are being given in our Moana Jr. Production rehearsals.

Empathy (E)- We are empathetic towards our classmates who have had to move classrooms. We are resilient enough to embrace the challenges that are coming our way with moving and look forward to seeing the results of our exciting new build.

Mindfulness (M)- In lesson 13 in our Resilience Project journal we are encouraged to ‘look at what we have’. There is so much for us to be appreciative of which can help us when we are experiencing negative thoughts.

VALUED STUDENT AWARDS

VALUED STUDENT AWARDS YEAR 5

SPECIALIST VALUED STUDENT AWARDS

NUMERACY NEWS

LIBRARY NEWS

PARENT CORNER

READING EGGS PARENT INFO SESSION

So, your school uses Reading Eggs - Join our Parent session to find out more about the program & how you can support your child at home.

During this session one of our product experts will walk you through the key areas of Reading Eggs, and how it can help foster your child’s love of reading!

Host: Brendan Colley
Date and Time options: Monday, 19 September (8.00 pm – 8.30 pm)
Click here to register

COMMUNITY NEWS

Disclaimer – The organisations advertised in this newsletter are not affiliated with and have no relationship to Oakleigh South Primary School. The publishing of these advertisements does not imply endorsement or recommendation of these products or services by the school. They are provided as a community service.