PUPIL FREE DAYS (OSHClub will be available on these days)

• Monday 1st November

TERM DATES

• 2021 TERM 3: Monday 12th July - Friday 17th September (2:30pm finish)
• 2021 TERM 4: Monday 4th October - Friday 17th December (1:30pm finish)

2021 CAMP DATES

• Year 5: Lady Northcote Recreation Camp - Tuesday 5th October to Friday 8th October

PARENTS AD FRIENDS BAKERY LUNCH DAYS - All Term 3 dates are now open for ordering via Compass Canteen.

• Thursday 19th August (Cancelled due to COVID-19 Lockdown)
• Thursday 2nd September (Cancelled due to COVID-19 Lockdown)
• Thursday 16th September (Orders closing on 13th September, 3:00pm)

Dear parents,

Thank you again for your continued support as we navigate the latest restrictions together. School is a fairly different place just now, bereft of the noise of 660 although the few students onsite are doing their best to emulate it! It seems a lot like last year with works happening around the school this time – cracked footpaths being replaced, an increased power supply into the school being accommodated with fenceline works, even enhanced internet being supplied to the school. I trust that our students enjoyed dance lessons online this week (those onsite did!), and we hope to put something together next week for Book Week as a special wellbeing highlight.

UPDATED ARRANGEMENTS FOR ONSITE SUPERVISION As mentioned in my Compass post on Wednesday, (but to reiterate), from Wednesday, August 18, parents and carers in metropolitan Melbourne can only request on-site supervision for their child/ren in the below categories:

Category A Children where both parents and or carers are considered authorised workers who cannot work from home, work for an authorised provider and where no other supervision arrangements can be made:

• Where there are two parents/carers, both must be authorised workers, working outside the home in order for their children to be eligible for on-site provision.
• For single parents/ carers, the authorised worker must be working outside the home in order for their children to be eligible for on-site provision.

Parents and carers who are authorised workers will need an authorised worker permit from their employers to access on-site supervision for their child/ren in Category A.

Category B On-site supervision continues to be available for the below students:

1. Children experiencing vulnerability, including:

• in out-of-home care
• deemed vulnerable by a government agency, funded family or family violence service, and assessed as requiring education and care outside the family home
• identified by a school or early childhood service as vulnerable, (including via referral from a government agency, or funded family or family violence service, homeless or youth justice service or mental health or other health service)
• Where a parent/carer indicates that a student with a disability is vulnerable because they cannot learn from home, and/or informs the school the student is vulnerable due to family stress, the school must provide on-site supervision for that student. This may apply to students enrolled in specialist schools and students with a disability enrolled in mainstream schools.

An authorised worker permit is not required for accessing on-site supervision under Category B.

An updated on-site attendance form is attached for those who meet the above categories and require on-site learning for their child/ren. All applications for the week beginning August 23 under Category A, must be supported by the proper paperwork.

Applications for onsite supervision for the week beginning August 23 CLOSE by Saturday, August 21 at 4pm, to enable staffing to be arranged for next week

ENROLMENTS Our Foundation numbers are 70 for 2022. This is just an impassioned plea to any of our current families with sibling enrolments for next year to please email or mail these to us at your earliest convenience.

BUILDING WORKS I can report that we were busy with interviews this week to select the architect for our major building project from September this year. He/she/they will be tasked with consulting with our community, developing a Master Plan and then seeing the next stage come to fruition over the next 18 months. When I am allowed to, I will share the successful architect’s name with you all.

I hope everyone has a good weekend, such as it is!!

Kind regards,

Bill Kersing

Principal

I hope you are all managing the lockdown restrictions as best as you can.

The last few weeks have certainly been challenging as restrictions continue to be tightened. Please know that you are not alone if you are feeling the strain.

This week, I am including a link to Channel 10’s ‘The Project’. On the show, Hugh van Cuylenberg from The Resilience Project discussed strategies to support our mental health during this difficult time. He encourages families to keep an open line of communication where feelings can be shared and validated and reminds us that as adults we can model the behaviours that we want our children to demonstrate.

This short video from Headspace is delivered by – Vikki Ryall, Executive Director of Clinical Practice

Tips and strategies for Victorian parents and carers during lockdown.

Please continue to support your children to engage with the remote learning opportunities provided. The social experiences as well as the educational opportunities provided through the morning and afternoon WebEx meetings and daily activities are incredibly valuable for your child’s wellbeing and academic progress. The curriculum content being delivered online to our students addresses the Victorian Curriculum and will continue to be built upon throughout remote learning and when we return to school.

Have a good week and remember, focus on the positives and the things you can control.

Gill

Origami Club Google Classroom Have you ever tried the ancient art form of Origami? Ms. Roccasalva has begun a club for students in Years 1 – 6 that would like a crafty challenge! Work through the skills beginning at yellow belt and finish all the challenges at black belt. You will find an invitation to the Origami Club in your Google Classroom. Students can also post photos of their creations to inspire and share their skills with others. Look at some of the fabulous creations from Viewbank students:

Curriculum Resources for Parents and Carers The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a large number of Australian students needing to learn from home on occasion, with many parents and carers keen for resources to support them in their learning.

ACARA has compiled a range of resources and links to support parents/carers at this unique time:

eSafety Commissioner The eSafety Commissioner has developed a range of resources described in the Open letter to Australia's parents and carers. The eSafety guide has new information on the use of common apps and programs (such as Zoom, Houseparty, etc.), and they have recently launched their first-ever national online safety education framework for Australian schools and teachers, helping them equip young people with the necessary skills for navigating the online world safely.

2021 Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Opinion Survey

Viewbank Primary school is conducting a survey to find out what parents, caregivers and guardians think of our school. The Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Opinion Survey is an annual survey offered by the Department of Education and Training that is conducted amongst a sample of parents, caregivers and guardians (previously known as the Parent Opinion Survey). It is designed to assist schools in gaining an understanding of families’ perceptions of school climate, student behaviour, student engagement and experiences of remote and flexible learning. Our school will use the survey results to help inform and direct future school planning and improvement strategies.

All parents will be invited to participate in this year’s survey. All responses to the survey are anonymous. This year, the Parent, Caregiver and Guardian Opinion Survey will be conducted from Monday 19th July to Sunday 22nd August.

The survey will be conducted online, only takes 20 minutes to complete, and can be accessed at any convenient time within the fieldwork period on desktop computers, laptops, tablets or smartphones. Please look out for the link that will be published on Compass and via email. The online survey will be available in a range of languages other than English. These include: Arabic, Vietnamese, Mandarin, Chin (Hakha), Hindi, Japanese, Somali, Turkish, Punjabi and Greek.

Please speak to the Acting Assistant Principal Karen Butler if you would like more information.

Have a great week!

Karen Butler

Year 5 Lady Northcote Camp Consent and a payment arrangement are required by Monday 23rd August, this can be provided via the Compass event. A payment plan option consisting of four instalments is available via the Compass event. Please contact me at viewbank.ps@education.vic.gov.au if you would like to discuss a different flexible payment arrangement to suit your family's situation. A full refund will be provided to families if the camp is cancelled due to the Education Department's COVID-19 Guidelines.

Bakery Lunch Orders Due to our current COVID Lockdown, today's and Thursday 2nd September planned Bakery Lunch Orders have been cancelled, all orders that had been placed for this day have been cancelled. All money will be returned to your own personal Compass Wallet.

Remote Learning: Limited Access

Access to school grounds is limited to:

• school staff
• students attending on-site learning
• contractors, including cleaners and maintenance workers
• outside-school-hours-care (OHSC) staff, enrolled children and their families.

If you need to collect or drop off anything at the school please call the office and a staff member will meet you at the main gate (Gate 1) on Nevin Parade.

Kind regards,

Lucy Addati

Business Manager

Bakery Lunch Orders - Every 2nd Thursday During Term

Lower Plenty Bakehouse will be to providing the school with fundraising Lunch Orders every second Thursday during Term. These lunches will be implemented via our Parents and Friends Committee and all money raised will be used towards our major school oval upgrade.

Our Term 3 Fundraising Lunch Order Dates are:

• Thursday 19th August (Cancelled due to COVID-19 Lockdown)
• Thursday 2nd September (Cancelled due to COVID-19 Lockdown)
• Thursday 16th September (Orders closing on 13th September, 3:00pm)

Orders need to be placed in advance via Compass Canteen. Ordering will close the Monday before the lunch date at 3pm. All of Term 3 Lunch dates are now open and ordering is able to be placed in advance for the whole term if you choose to do so.

Please see attached a Parent User Guide on how to order via Compass Canteen. Please note a 35 cents order fee will be charged at check out.

​​ICY POLE FRIDAY Students are able to purchase icy poles over the counter at lunchtime every Friday. All icy poles cost $1.00 each. Due to COVID-19 Guidelines, this event has been cancelled until further notice.

CLASSROOM CUISINE provides lunch orders to our school on a MONDAY, WEDNESDAY and FRIDAYS.

Lunches must be ordered online using the CLASSROOM CUISINE website.

Extra Curricula Clubs We have a range of weekly extra curricula activities that students are invited to participate in. Some are free and others require parent payment. If your child wishes to join please encourage them to go along on the scheduled day or you may like to contact the school office or the classroom teacher to discuss participation.

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SECOND HAND UNIFORM SALE - Every Friday 8:45am to 9:15am, next to the music room. Jumpers with the school logo, long and short sleeve school polo tops and school dresses will be $5.00 and all other items $2.00. We are currently asking for donations of any unwanted reusable school uniform items to sell at our stall.

Instrumental Music Enrolments Can all students who would like to join our school instrumental music programs please inform the relevant teacher below of your expression of interest.

SINGING WITH GABRIELLA - Gabriella

• Email: favrettogab@gmail.com
• Phone: 0413 676 733

STRINGS WITH MR CAI - Gabriella

• Email: favrettogab@gmail.com
• Phone: 0413 676 733

GUITAR/BASS GUITAR - Alec

• Email: alec.stalder@gmail.com
• Phone: 0422 690 842

PIANO/KEYBOARD - Ella

• Email: ellac.blackburn@gmail.com
• Phone: 0410 938 840

DRUMS - James

• Email: orangejimmy@gmail.com
• Phone: 0405 845 628

PHONE NUMBER: 0448 075 422

EMAIL: viewbank@oshclub.com.au

A PLUS SCHOOLWEAR Our uniform supplier is A Plus Schoolwear which is located at 41-43 Northern Road Heidelberg West. Open hours are Monday, Wednesday and Friday’s from 9am to 4.30pm (closed on weekend and public holidays).

You can also purchase your uniform online at www.aplusschoolwear.com.au