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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 05
March 2nd 2023 |
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
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Welcome to Country
By School Captains Harper and Naida On Tuesday the 28th of February, Oak Park Primary School came together with the community for our annual Smoking Ceremony. Our presenter, Aunty Mandy, was welcomed to perform this traditional cleansing ritual. The ceremony began with Helena from 5/6S and Ben from FH reciting the Acknowledgement to Country. Aiden and Josh from 56C then introduced our special guest, Aunty Mandy Nicholson. Mandy talked about her Indigenous heritage and taught us names of native animals in the Woi Wurrung language. She then demonstrated how to begin the fire, and placed Lemon Scented Gum on the flames. The white smoke produced a unique lemony scent. We thanked her for showing us this amazing experience, and each grade took turns walking past the smoke and were able to ask Mandy questions. It was a great experience for all students. 
Principal's Column
Breakfast Club and Early arrivals Thanks to our student volunteers and staff that support Breakfast Club. Great to see a recent increase in students attending this program. Sue, Sally and myself enjoy greeting students and making a positive impact alongside our students leaders. Breakfast Club is open from 8.25am to 8.50am. We supply toast and various cereals on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday each week, hosted from the staffroom. Students must arrive by 8.40am at the latest to allow the opportunity to eat and arrive at class on-time. Please note that for all other students our school yard has supervision from 8:40am each morning. We’ve had students arrive as early as 8:15 on occasion, this is too early and school cannot take responsibility for supervising students in the yard at this time. The school has a subsided and affordable program to support students that need to arrive early, please contact before school care via email at [email protected] or (03) 9300 3412 if you require any further information. NAPLAN Commences March 15th The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) for Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 students are held in March each year. In 2023, the NAPLAN test window is between Wednesday 15 March and Monday 27 March. NAPLAN tests assess student knowledge and skills in writing, reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy. The results of the tests provide information for students, parents, teachers and principals and can be used to improve student achievement. NAPLAN tests are delivered in an online format. This delivers many benefits including:
A public demonstration site is available for schools, teachers, parents, carers and students to familiarise themselves with the online tests. Shortly our Year 3 and Year 5 students will complete their practice online NAPLAN tests. Thanks to David Lu, Sally and teachers for their support and coordination. Year 5 students will be completing their writing component online. To assist with the use of iPads the school has purchased keyboards to support students with typing their responses on a physical keyboard. Year 3 students continue to complete their Writing assessment with physical pencil and paper. Further parent information here: https://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/assessment/f-10assessment/naplan/Pages/parents/index.aspx Parent Information (Turkish) https://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/Documents/naplan/parentpamphlet/2023/NAPLANOnlineInformationForParentsAndCarersTurkish.pdf Jane Cardamone – 3/4C Teacher Update Our long-standing staff member Jane Cardamone is taking some long service leave in Term 2, returning for part of Term 3 and then resigning from full-time work at Oak Park. Jane has been a valued staff member for close to 20 years at Oak Park and supported the education and growth of hundreds of students during her tenure. We’re sorry to see her leave but happy to support her transition into more voluntary work. To best support the students in 3/4C the school is seeking a full-time replacement to commence in Term 2 with some planned handover toward the end of term. A state-wide recruitment process has already begun, hopefully we can announce a successful candidate shortly. Jane was unable to attend the ‘Meet the Teacher’ event hosted on the 22nd of February. An alternative date for bookings on March 8th has been proposed, from 2:30 – 5:30pm. A Compass event will be posted shortly to provide families the opportunity to book. Kind regards, Michael Gill Principal Interschool Sports
Assembly Schedule - Term 1
Student Phones
A reminder that students who bring phones to school are asked to hand them into the office prior to school starting, they can then pick them up at the end of the day. Phones are kept securely in the office. Staff Car Park
We ask again, that families dropping off and picking up their child, do not park in the Staff car park. This week we have noticed many parents driving through the staff car park to drop their child to school. This means that when staff arrive to school, they are unable to park there. We ask you to respect our space. Compass Notification
When your child will be dropped at school late due an appointment or similar, we ask that you do not do a Compass notification until you bring your child into school. You will need to sign them in at the office when they actually arrive at school. Please do not mark a late arrival (or early departure) from home as this causes a discrepancy in their attendance. Healthy Eating
At Oak Park Primary School, we have a Healthy Eating policy, and we have implemented a “No Food Sharing” Practice. This includes no food sharing for birthday celebrations as we have many students who either have anaphylaxis or food allergies and it is dangerous for some students to eat certain foods. We are happy for parents to bring in small items for the class to share, such as pencils, stationary etc and non-food items, to celebrate a birthday. We thank you for your assistance in regard to this. Harmony Day
Harmony Day is coming up on Tuesday 21st of March, and we encourage students to wear something orange to support the day. Harmony Day is a celebration of our cultural diversity – a day of cultural respect for everyone who calls Australia home. Held every year in March, Harmony Day coincides with the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Free Lunch of the Week
This week’s winner is Asper from FM! Asper said his favourite food in his lunchbox today was his cheese sandwich. 
Book Club
Thank you for all the orders from Issue 1 of Book Club. All orders have been distributed to students, if you have not received your order please contact me asap. Issue 2 of Book Club is on the way! Happy reading everyone. Michelle Parent Hacks
We’d love to get your parent hacks to share with our community. Please forward to Fran at [email protected] Second Hand Uniform Sale
This Friday 3 March from 3–4 pm the PFA will be holding a Second-hand Uniform Sale in the classroom in the gym building. This gives families at our school an opportunity to purchase second-hand any uniform items that they need. All funds raised from the sale go to the school.
***Please note that unfortunately we won’t be accepting any unwanted uniforms or uniforms for swapping at this sale. Thanks and see you there, The PFA Wellbeing
Breakfast Club Breakfast Club is open from 8.25am to 8.50am. Students must arrive by 8.40am at the latest. We ask that students do not arrive to school earlier than 8.25 to attend Breakfast Club Sue, Amany, Sally and Michael Breakfast Cub Crew Fruit Delivery
We are busy getting ready for our fruit delivery next week. Fingers crossed the fruit arrives on time! 
Specialist
Performing Arts School Values in the Performing Arts classroom In Performing Arts, we rely on our school values of respect, resilience and responsibility in each and every lesson. Without these values firmly practised and modelled, a drama class cannot succeed. All students need to feel safe and supported to discover their true potential and then have confidence to show their true potential to others. Grade 5/6 students are showing a great deal of resilience in this first term. We have been focussing on neutral scripts and each student is presenting work each week. Showing script work is risk taking, with a reality that their presentation may change suddenly and students must improvise and work together make the scene work. This type of work can only be done if a student feels supported by peers. Building respect and showing resilience in the classroom is the key for success in our creative work space. Physical Education
We had our first hit-out at interschool sport last Friday against Glenroy Central Primary across three different sports. Our cricket team (picture provided) won 258 – 69, led by a very impressive bowling display from Liam in grade 5. The cricket team sits on top of the ladder in our division. Bat tennis saw the mixed team defeated 18 – 20 and the girls team winning 20 – 10. The girls team are on top of the ladder and the mixed team sits at second place. The softball teams faced some difficult competition with the girls team defeated 6 – 9, while the mixed team was edged out of victory by one point with a score of 7 – 8. Both softball teams sit in second place on the ladder. There is no game scheduled for Friday 3rd March due to a bye. We will use this time to refine our skills as we match up against arch-rivals St. Francis the following week. Let’s go Oak Park! 
Science
Week 6 The Benefits of specialist science at Oak Park Primary School. From a very young age, children are naturally curious and inquisitive about the world around them. Our junior students in particular love asking questions about how things work and why things happen. Scientific exploration and research give children the opportunity to explore, inquire, to problem-solve, cooperate, and communicate with others Through exploring science as well as famous scientists, students can learn about how to be discoverers themselves. They see that science is explorative, innovative, and creative. Students also learn the important life lessons of dealing with the doubts and frustrations of stepping out into uncharted territory. It is our hope that being involved in science classes will spark a love of science in our students and will set them up for a lifelong interest in learning and discovery. Japanese News
In Japanese we have been learning lots of ways to greet each other and the different ways we can communicate with friends and our community. We have been practising with each other, playing introduction games and creating flashcards and posters to help us remember many common greetings and phrases. We have also been learning to read, write and say Japanese numbers to 100. Students have been playing number games and practising how to write and say the numbers in Kanji. The students are really enjoying practising new language through games with their peers and have produced wonderful posters for a ‘Greetings’ wall in our classroom. Lunch Orders
It has been fantastic to see so many students ordering lunch orders on Fridays. Gabby, Sandra and Vanessa are hard at work preparing homemade nutritious and delicious lunch orders each Friday. Please remember to place orders online by Thursday 11:00am through QKR! app (can be downloaded from Apple Store).
Lost Property
We have found this one, lonely Nike shoe in our lost property! At this stage no one has come to the office or called to say they have lost one of their shoes! It looks fairly new, so someone must be missing this? Please contact the Office if this may be yours 
Year 6-7 Transition
The process for Year 6-7 Transition starts in Term 2. The placement information pack will be sent home to all families of current Grade 6 students at that time. The parent/carer pack contains:
Please keep an eye on the newsletter as Open Days and School Tour information will be posted as it is received. For those families wishing to enrol privately or at Catholic Schools, you will need to contact them directly as their transition process has already started. If your child has been accepted at a Catholic or Private school, you will still need to state this on the Application and return to the Office. 
Community News
Sports
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Penola Saints Netball Club
Oak Park Football Club
Glenroy News
School Contacts
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