A very warm welcome to all of our students and families who are returning to Woodend Primary School and a special welcome to our 97 new receptions and their families, as well as older students and their families starting at Woodend School for the first time. Teachers have each been preparing for the first day of school and a great deal of planning has taken place, both individually and in teams.

Building works

We are very pleased to return to a ‘normal’ start to the school year after 3 years of being impacted by Covid-19 restrictions. This being said, you will have noticed that we still have substantial building works happening. This is impacting our learning and play spaces. Some classes will start the year in temporary classroom spaces and will need to move once learning spaces are handed back. Our specialist teachers will all be working in a variety of learning spaces for much of the year and may need to offer alternate programs due to their limited spaces. We will keep you updated as the situation changes.

‘Cheers and Tears’ for new reception families

Monday morning will begin with ‘Cheers and Tears’ for our new reception families. New families are invited to join members of parent network in the newly furnished space outside of the canteen for a cup of tea or coffee or a cold drink with some nibbles to share tears and/or cheers as your children start this new chapter in their lives.

During the first week of school, reception children will be at school for the mornings only (until 12.30pm)and in the afternoon reception class teachers are meeting with their parents/carers.  We call these conversations ‘Building Connections Conversations’. Our school operates as a community, with the expectation that each child has both school and home operating in tandem to provide a learning environment that caters for each child.

Arrival at school in the morning

We remind everyone that there are no teachers on duty until 8:30 am in the school yard and so we require students to only arrive on or after 8:30am.  As is the practice at schools, students arriving earlier than 8:30am and not having a school commitment, will be sent to OSHC and parents will be invoiced.

Classrooms are open from 8:30am. In instances where teachers have meetings or duty prior to school starting, students may drop their bags outside of the classroom door before playing in supervised yard areas.

To support students with being settled and ready to learn, it is important to arrive on time. Students who arrive after 8:55am are required to sign in at the front office.

Bell times

8.55am | Teacher on duty in the yard and on the school crossings

10.40am – 11.00am | Recess break

12.45pm – 12.55pm | Supervised lunch eating time

12.55pm – 1.25pm | Lunch play

3.05pm | School day concludes, teachers are on duty at the Kiss and Go and the crossings until 3.20pm

Kiss and Go

We remind families to check the previous blog post for details about use of the Kiss and Go. The safety of our children relies on all families doing the right thing. Parking is not allowed in this space and families are reminded that this is a 2 minute time zone. Please take the time to drive around the block if your child is not ready for collection, consider arriving closer to 3.15pm or park nearby and walk.

To help with morning Kiss and Go drop off, each morning a senior student will greet younger students at the Edward Beck Drive gate to help with opening the latch.

Communication

Please ensure that you are able to access the school communication by subscribing to the NewsBlog and joining class Seesaw groups.  We rely on parents reading information in a timely manner as it supports activities that involve students and families. More information about school communication is available on the website. If you have any questions about this, please contact Kerri at the from office in the first instance.