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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 1
February 4th 2021 |
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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Principal's Column
Welcome back to school everyone! I’m sure the children will agree with me that the holidays seemed to fly past very, very quickly. A special welcome to all of the families new this year to Oak Park Primary School. This of course includes our Foundation families – many of whom have already formed a relationship with the school via older brothers and sisters – and families of children who enrolled just this year. This year we welcomed back Stephanie Lambiris (grade 6), Kathy Seator (Foundation) and Amy Devlin (Tutoring Program) as well as welcoming Caitlin Obliubek who will be teaching Grade 1. It has been a great start to the new school year, with a really positive tone in classrooms and in the schoolyard. Even the Foundation classes were very settled – speaking volumes for the work put in by our teachers and our fantastic transition program. I heard the Education Minister on the radio last week talking about the first day of school for Foundation students. He said that he’d been through that first time several times with his own children and it was always a little sad to be sending your child off to school for the first time. I understand what he was saying, and the tinge of sadness in seeing kids grow up so quickly, but I also think it’s great as a parent to see your children achieve these milestones. When we see our kids moving from crawling to walking, we don’t usually feel sad about that – we are happy that they are demonstrating growth. As primary teachers, we are really lucky that we get to see all of students grow – physically, academically and socially in such a short time. As most of you know already, we are a Compass school and strongly encourage everyone to ensure they connect. This has become a major form of communication for us and it is partly a parent’s responsibility to ensure they make use of all the forms of communication that are available. RETIREMENT As mentioned via COMPASS earlier this week, I will be retiring from the Department of Education from the start of Term 2 this year. After over 40 years working in the department including 20 years as Principal, and nearly 12 years at Oak Park, my final day will be the last day of Term 1. It is likely that there will be an acting Principal in Term 2 who will be appointed prior to the end of this term. Then, during Term 2, the Principal Selection panel will be formed who will go through the process of appointing the substantive Principal. I’d like to take the opportunity to thank our parents, families and the entire Oak Park community for your wonderful support over the years. It has been an honour to have been part of this community and an association I will always treasure. I feel particularly privileged to have worked with your children who have been an absolute delight to be around. Whoever is appointed to the position will indeed be very fortunate to have the opportunity to work in such a great school. All the best for the future! LUNCHTIME ACTIVITIES PROGRAM Please see the table below for an outline of the activities students may like to participate in during lunchtimes this term: 
Special Assembly: Welcome to Country
This Friday, 5th February, we will be having assembly at a different time of 9:15am on the tiger turf. This is to accommodate a Welcome to Country and Smoking Ceremony performed by Wurundjeri woman Kellie Hunter and Wurundjeri man Uncle Ian Goolagong. To recent knowledge, this is the first-time traditional owners are performing the ceremony on the land where Oak Park Primary School resides. Traditionally, Welcome to Country’s are performed to welcome visitors and Smoking Ceremonies are done to cleanse and rest the spirits of elder’s past and present. Oak Park Primary School acknowledges that we are on the land of the Wurundjeri people. As a sign of respect, we encourage families to attend and if they so wish, contribute a gold coin to the organisation ‘Pay the Rent’. The organisation works to distribute money to the local indigenous people to strengthen culture, belonging and sovereignty. Gold coin donations will be collected by students from classrooms during the day. We are very excited to learn and grow from our traditional owners and we hope you can join us in the celebration of unity and togetherness. From Week 3, assemblies will be held on Friday at 3pm. 2021 Student Leaders
Our 2021 School leaders are: School Captains: Julian and Bailey Vice Captains: Donika and Ethan Performing Arts: Ola and Yuan Visual Art: Teagan and Ella Sustainability: Tahlia and Lucia PE: Gabe D / Gabe B, Jack , Aylin and Lucy Maths: Ruby and Kyle Library: Chloe ICT: Sharkey, Harley, Adriana and Montana Graduation Committee: Tabitha, Annie, Ryan and Mertay Wellness: Tanya, Amelia, Ishaal, Amelia, Lucy, Alex and Emmanuel Fundraising Committee: Ryder, Omar, Avery, Llewelyn and Noah We wish them all the best in their leadership roles this year! Foundation News
Our Foundation students had their first full day of school on Monday. They spent the day making new friends and engaging in some fun activities together. A highlight was sharing lunch with their Grade 6 Buddies. Well done to all of our wonderful Foundation students!
Breakfast Club
A reminder: Our breakfast club is a great way to spend a half hour with other students. Come and join in - Monday, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8:30am 
COVID-19 – Social Distancing
When you are gathering in groups, please be mindful of students and parents if they can’t pass you within the 1.5m distance – and if you need to pass anyone at a distance closer than 1.5m, please use your mask. Masks should be carried at all times Uniform Lost Property
Once again, there are many items of schoolwear and non-uniform pieces in our lost property cupboard, including mainly expensive bomber jackets. This cupboard is absolutely overflowing. Please, we ask that this cupboard is checked if your child has misplaced uniform. Miscellaneous lost property
Some of the lost property that is being held at the office includes the following:
Interrelate Information Session
I'm sending out this expression of interest to our Oak Park Primary families, in regards to holding an information session, run by Interrelate. In order to host these sessions, we need to know if families are interested in attending. The sessions will include the following:- Session 1: Where Did I Come From? Time: 6:00pm Audience: Year 3 and 4 students and their parents/carers Sessions: 1 x 60-minute session Program focus: • Discuss the male and female reproductive systems, foetal development and the birth process • Personal safety and protective behaviours. Session 2: Preparing For Puberty Time: 7:15pm Audience: Year 5 and 6 students and their parents/carers Sessions: 1 x 60-minute session Program focus: • Discuss the physical changes of puberty, emphasising that it can be different for everyone • Develop students’ understanding of periods and sperm production, as well as the physical, emotional, social and intellectual changes associated with puberty for both boys and girls • Enhance awareness of children’s personal safety and protective behaviours. Where: Oak Park Primary School When: 23-Feb-2021 Family cost: 1 session $35 per family | 2 sessions $35 per family Please note that this cost is GST inclusive. Please RSVP to Maria Giordano at [email protected] if you are interested in attending, by no later than 9th February. If we have sufficient interest, I will send out further information, and a payment form via Compass, on 10th February. Payment needs to be made in order to secure your attendance to the session/s. Chess Club 2021
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Chess Club has started again this week. Chess Club is run on a Wednesday during the first half of lunch. This is an excellent opportunity for your child to learn the skills. Please complete this form and return to the Office.
C.S.E.F
CSEF Forms are available from the Office. If you hold a Centrelink Pension or Health Care card you are entitled to claim this payment. You are then able to utilise this payment towards your childs Camp, Sports or Excursions at school. Please click here for a printable copy. 
Lunch Orders
Lunch Orders are bought to school on Wednesdays and students need to place them in the Lunch Order Cool Pack in their class as soon as they get to school. They are then collected by the Oak Park Café, Chestnut Grove, and returned for lunch order day on a Thursday. Unfortunately no late lunch orders can be accepted 
Sustainability
Sustainability (STACS) in 2021 Welcome back to another year, and to our new families for the first time. Below is an outline of what students will be covering in ‘Sustainability’ (I have now re-named STACS – Science, Technology, Aboriginal Culture & Sustainability – as this more accurately describes what we cover). 5/6 ‘Sustainability’ is now known as STACS (Science, Technology, Aboriginal Culture & Sustainability) as this more accurately reflects what is covered. In Term 1, students will be looking into the Wurundjeri – the traditional owners of the local area. We will investigate the locations, language and people that were the original inhabitants and learn about the customs, tools, food etc. from the area. Students will round out the term by choosing an important Wurundjeri person either from the present or past, and providing a thorough profile of their deeds, their life and what it was like to be a Wurundjeri person living in what is now Melbourne and surrounds. 3/4 ‘Sustainability’ is now known as STACS (Science, Technology, Aboriginal Culture & Sustainability) as this more accurately reflects what is covered. In Term 1, we are taking part in the ‘Birds In Schools’ program in conjunction with Birdlife Australia (this is a program only six schools are participating in, so we are very lucky to be involved!). In doing so we will investigate local birds and learn to identify them by their appearance, features, behaviour and call. We will conduct bird-watching surveys as part of a citizen science project which will be reported to Birdlife Australia scientists. We will look at habitats, the varying needs of different local birds and how we can provide better environments for local birds. The end result is the formulation of an action plan which could take on many forms, depending on the direction students choose to go. 1/2 ‘Sustainability’ is now known as STACS (Science, Technology, Aboriginal Culture & Sustainability) as this more accurately reflects what is covered. In Term 1, we will be looking at planting practices and how we can make the most of our crops and the spaces we have. We will use planting and seasonal guides to decide what to put in our garden beds, look into the use of compost as an organic soil conditioner and fertiliser, investigate crop rotations and take part in planting and caring for vegetables and fruits from our garden. We will hopefully be able to taste the fruits of our labours later in the term. Foundation I’m very sad not to be working with Foundation this year. However, I have prepared a series of lessons for class teachers to undertake, introducing students to the measures we use to make our school more sustainable and to reduce our impact on the world around us. Students will be introduced to the range of waste disposal options we have (recycling, compost and landfill) and choosing the right place for common items. They will be encouraged to become familiar with and respectful of the living things in our schoolgrounds, to use water and electricity responsibly and to take part in community events that aim to improve the environment (eg. Clean Up Australia Day). Bins and dumping I spent an hour on the Tuesday before school started cleaning up rubbish dumped in our ‘drop-off’ area. It was pretty horrible stuff and disappointing that someone local had dumped it all for us to clean up. If you see anything like this happening, please say something, as it’s not fair that the school we work hard to make inviting is sullied by this type of dumping. Also, you would possibly be aware of our recycling hubs for clothing and electronics in the ‘drop-off’ area. If these are full, please hold off for a short time until they are emptied. As soon as I notice they are full I contact the company to come out and do a collection, so it generally won’t be very long you will have to wait. If they are dumped on the ground near the bins they inevitably become targets for vandalism, damage and destruction. Special recycling collections Parents may not be aware that we collect many items for recycling at school that can’t go in your regular recycling bin. We encourage you to bring the following items to school to recycle: ink cartridges, old mobile phones, CFL light globes, bread tabs, plastic bottle lids, batteries, toothbrushes and toothpaste tubes – there are collection tubs for all these in the foyer near the office. We also have electronic waste and clothing recycling bins in the ‘drop-off’ area. Everything we can recycle means less is going to landfill, so please drop in your items so we can get them made into new products. Thank you! We are very lucky to have had some wonderful families looking after our school pets over the holidays. I would like to thank Harper (grade 4), Tia (grade 5), Maya (grade 3), Ola (grade 6), Austin (grade 1) and Andrew (Foundation) and their families for taking wonderful care of our chickens, turtles and lizards over the school holidays! Well done and thank you! Free books I have placed two tubs of books in the office foyer, near the recycling tubs. Please feel free to take some of these books and give them a good home. There’s something for most year levels there, so please check them out. Some of the titles include Zac Power, Choose Your Own Adventure, Dork Diaries, Aussie Bites and authors like Margaret Clark, Bob Graham, Paul Jennings, Patricia Wrightson, Pat Hutchins amongst many others, so there is some good stuff there! Plastic bottle tops David Flint and I are combining the STACS (Sustainability) and Visual Arts programs and lunch time activities to facilitate students creating a mural paying respects to the Wurundjeri people as the traditional owners of the land on which our school stands. We are using plastic bottle caps as our main material to encourage re-use of otherwise landfill-bound items. We are collecting these to use and would encourage you to bring in any you have, can be any size; and drop them into the tubs in the office foyer (these are labelled so they can be easily identified). We are particularly looking for red, brown, orange, yellow, white, black and green but happy to take other colours too. Recycling clothing/textiles Many of you will know (or do now!) that we have a clothing/textiles recycling hub in the drop-off area on Summit Avenue. This is part of our recycling programs and helps avoid many, many things going to landfill. SCR Group manages the re-use or recycling of these materials and in exchange we get a small payment for our collections. A large number of schools are involved in this program, but we are right up there with the best recyclers! Below is the Top 20 rankings table from 2020. We came in 12th for recycling per student, and 6th for total volume! Well done everyone, please continue to use this service and avoid all these materials heading to landfill. 
Lawn Bowls
This term the 5/6 students are participating in Lawn Bowls. Wayne from Essendon Bowls Club is kindly running the sessions, where students are learning to play the game. This is leading up to a Lawn Bowls competition on March 3rd, where some students will be selected to compete against schools in District Level competition at Fitzroy Bowls Club. The sessions have been really fun so far and we look forward to seeing skills progress! If your child is interested, please let Liam know and he will add them to the list. Also, if you have any questions, please direct them to Liam. 
Maths Club
Next week, Maths Club will be running for the Foundation – Grade 2 students! Please come to the 5/6 area at the first half of lunch on Tuesday. Our new Maths Captains, Kyle and Ruby, will be running the session. 
Year 6-7 Transition
ATTENTION GRADE 5 PARENTS: The Process for Applications to Secondary College for 2022/Year 7 students start approximately April 2021. Information will be added to the newsletter as it comes in, and will be forwarded to all families of Grade 5 students at this time. Penola Catholic College Enrolments for Year 7-2022 are now open at Penola Catholic College. Applications close on the 20th August 
Community News
Strathmore Heights Netball Club are now taking registrations for the upcoming Autumn 2021 Season. Contact us now ([email protected]) to lock in your spot for teams in SET, GO, U11, U13 and U15. 
School Contacts
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