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The Oak Leaf |
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Address: Willett Avenue, Oak Park VIC 3046
T:(03) 9306 9182 E: [email protected] |
Issue 07
March 15th 2024 |
Oak Park Primary School will work collaboratively to provide a stimulating, safe and challenging learning environment that promotes resilient, innovative thinkers.
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Calendar of Events
Term 1 Events:
Term 2 Events:
Term 3 Events:
Term 4 Events:
Principal's Column
Annual Implementation Plan Online For interested parents our Annual Implementation Plan is online, after endorsement from the Department of Education and our School Council President. The Annual Implementation Plan (AIP) summarises our plans as a school for 2024. A continued focus on Mathematics, Writing and Student Wellbeing form the major components of the 2024 plan. These key points provide an overview of the comprehensive AIP for Oak Park Primary School, focusing on key aspects such as academic improvement, student wellbeing, funding allocation, and professional learning. We have selected three goals from our strategic plan to focus on for 2024. Goal 1 Priorities goal (DET) - In 2024 we will continue to focus on student learning - with an increased focus on numeracy - and student wellbeing through the priorities goal, a learning key improvement strategy and a wellbeing key improvement strategy. Key Improvement Strategies:
Key Improvement Strategies:
Key Improvement Strategies:
Communication Survey – Last chance for your feedback Thanks to those that have already completed our communication survey. We’ll operate the survey for one more week to gather as much feedback as possible. We’re interested in improving and enhancing the school’s communication to families and the current use of Compass, Term Newsletters and our weekly Newsletter. We would appreciate you completing this short survey to let us know how we can improve. A thank you to Lola Grech and Kate Lamont of their support in developing the survey questions and content. We value your feedback to help make our great school even better! Communication Survey Link Ride and Stride Parent Volunteers – Open Streets is supported for 2024! |
Building on the successes of last year, we are pleased to announce that we have secured training and garnered sufficient volunteer support to proceed with organizing our own Open Street events. The lovely people at Thanks a Latte (Coffee Van) are booked for our first event on Wednesday 27th of March, so stop by for a coffee or hot chocolate before school.
In addition to recruiting three parent volunteers, we are grateful to have Thomas from Team Kids lending his support to our efforts. An upcoming training session scheduled for the 20th of March will provide necessary guidance and instruction for our volunteers, with opportunities still available for others to join and contribute to our initiatives. Please email Michael if you’re interested in supporting. At present the council has promoted the following dates as Open Street opportunities for the school:
Kind regards, Michael Gill Principal Harmony Day
School Assembly
Summer Sport Fixture
School Tours
School Tours for prospective 2025 families will be starting in Term 2. They will start at 10am, every 2nd Friday from 26th April. Dates are: Friday 26th Apr, 10th May, 24th May, 7th Jun, & 21st Jun. We ask parents to register to attend a school tour by emailing Fran at [email protected] 2025 Enrolments
2025 Enrolments are now open. Those families who will have a sibling attend next year, please email Fran at [email protected] for a full enrolment form. For new families to the school, please check your designated neighbourhood school at www.findmyschool.vic.gov.au You may email Fran with your residential address and an appropriate enrolment form will be forwarded to you. School tours will start in the 2nd term and families who have given an enrolment form will be contacted via email once dates are confirmed. Information will also be in our weekly newsletter as well on our website. All enrolments must be submitted by Friday 26th July. Year 6-7 Transition
The Year 6-7 Transition process will start in Week 1 Term 2. Oak Park Primary School will distribute the Year 6-7 Placement Information Packs to all families of Grade 6 students after this time. Enclosed will be an Application form for completion by the families, FAQ and a timeline of the process. Parents/Guardians:
Information from Secondary Colleges regarding school tours and information days/nights will be placed in our newsletter as they becomes available. We would advise families to make the most of these opportunities so you may make an informed decision regarding your preferred school. After forms are distributed, should you require any further information please contact Fran at [email protected] 2M News
BOUNCE BACK IN YEAR 2 During Term 1, the Year 2 cohort have been busy exploring the Bounce Back program, and students have rotated between Mrs Anderson’s, Tess’ and Alyena’s classrooms. Students have focused on developing resilience skills such as being fair, responsible, cooperative, and adapting to changes in their lives. The understanding that nobody is perfect and kindness is a value we can learn and practise each day, has been an integral part of this unit. We will have an Inquiry Expo on Monday the 25th March (final week of Term 1) in the last session of the day. The Expo will be held in Tess’ classroom and families are invited to attend and see their child’s work at the below times. Please note, all Grade 2 work will be on display in the 2H classroom. Here are the allocated times for each class to attend the Expo with their families: 2A parents and students to attend from - 2.30-2.50 2M parents and students to attend from - 2.50-3.10 2H parents and students to attend from - 3.10-3.30 We look forward to seeing you in Week 9. Tess, Alyena and Mrs Anderson 
Calling All Rock Stars
We’re looking for members to join the Rock Band Program! If you sing, play guitar, bass, piano, keyboard or drums we want to invite you to audition. Prospective students are to prepare a 1 minute performance of a song of their choice to demonstrate their talents. (We recommend that students have 1 year of experience on their instrument and are currently taking lessons). Students who are accepted will be notified on the 28th of March and invited to join the program for Term 2 Who: Students in Grade 3-6 who can sing or play an instrument* When: Thursday March 21st 11am (Lunch Break) Where: The Multimedia Room What: perform a 1 minute rendition of a song to show off your talents *Students don’t need to be learning in the school music program but we strongly recommend they are actively getting lessons Specialist
Science News In science classes this week our junior scientists took a slight detour from the weather into another area of Earth Science and explored how volcanoes are created and why they erupt. Students were keen to share their prior knowledge and stories about volcanoes, and we learnt some interesting new terminology – lava, magma, crust, crater and vents. The junior classes showed a lot of enthusiasm for some real-life videos of volcanic eruptions, especially underwater ones! We then completed an ‘Underwater Volcano’ experiment where we used hot and cold water to mimic a volcanic eruption, as well as test how different temperature liquids reacted to one another. The junior scientists practiced making verbal predictions and observations and did a fantastic job of recording their experiments using diagrams and labels. Well done this week, junior vulcanologists! 
Visual Arts News
In our bustling art classroom, Grade 3 and 4 students have been busy exploring the enchanted world of Cherry Blossom Trees (Sakura) in their Visual Arts classes. Though their creations are still a work in progress, students are already showcasing their creativity and skill through a unique technique known as "Blow Painting." With eager anticipation, students have been learning the art of "Blow Painting" using watered-down black acrylic paint to create captivating tree designs. This innovative method allows them to unleash their imagination and experiment with different textures and shapes, resulting in some truly intriguing and dynamic tree formations. As the students continue to refine their Blow Painting techniques, they eagerly await the final touch that will bring their Cherry Blossom Trees to life, the addition of delicate blossoms. In upcoming lessons, they will be using pink acrylic paint and cotton buds to delicately dot the branches with blossoms, adding a touch of colour to their creations. Through this project, our Grade 3 and 4 artists are not only expanding on their artistic skills, but also learning about the cultural significance of Cherry Blossom Trees in Japanese culture. They are discovering how these iconic trees symbolise beauty, renewal, and the fleeting nature of life, fostering a deeper appreciation for both art and nature. Below are some of the examples the students have created so far. David Flint Visual Arts Specialist Teacher 
Performing Arts
This week in Performing Arts Grade 1/2 students used the Drama Device ‘Conscious Alley’ to help make connections to characters in our focus story book ‘Herb the Vegetarian Dragon’. Herb the dragon is faced with dilemma of eating meat and being like all the other dragons to stay alive or staying true to himself and taking a risk. Grade ½ students created two lines and each gave reasons why they thought Herb should or shouldn’t eat meat like the other dragons. Conscious Alleys really help children identify with the characters in the book and allow them to openly discuss difficult subjects. Next week these grades all have a character to play and we will be dressing up and acting out the final scene in this great story. We can’t wait to share the photos with you! 
P.F.A
A reminder: PFA’s AGM will be held on Tuesday 19 March at 7 pm in the staffroom at the school. The meeting will include election of the committee and details of activities planned for the year ahead. All are welcome to attend. If you have any questions about the PFA, please feel free to email them to: [email protected]. Look forward to seeing you there! Thanks from the PFA Team Kids
Team Kids have another amazing Autumn Holiday Program planned. Learn new skills with their qualified and remarkable educators. Digital detox with no screens policy in place. Delicious and nutritious morning and afternoon snacks. CCS approved care. Head to http://downloads.teamkids.com.au/oak-park-primary.pdf to check out Oak Park Primary's program + secure your spot today! 
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