The West #3 2024

Principal's Preface

The term has flown by, the speed probably explained by its relative shortness. We’ve squashed much into the shorter time frame, with NAPLAN concluded and Harmony Week celebrated, amongst other things. During the latter, our students completed activities that promoted acceptance, empathy and the appreciation of individual and cultural difference. This culminated in the creation of a fitting mural which you can view in the assembly area. Bernard Mangakahia (MANA), a Polynesian performer, also paid an energetic visit. His performance was infectious, involving a range of props, songs and dance moves. Before we knew it, students and staff were on their feet, attempting to replicate his moves, rhythms and music. The visit was an uplifting experience and one I don’t think we’ll forget any time soon. Thank you to the P&C for funding this incursion.

Talking of the P&C, please note that after poor attendance, the AGM has been rescheduled for Monday 22^nd April at 6:45pm at The Odin. All are welcome and we would be grateful for your support to ensure we have a full executive committee for 2024. The P&C support the school in providing financial assistance for the benefit of the students, as well as organising numerous community events – the disco on Friday is a great example. It will be a huge loss for the school community if we do not have a P&C this year. Thank you in anticipation of your support.   

Many of you have taken the opportunity to meet with your child’s teacher over the past few weeks and I am sure found this useful in finding how best to support your child on their learning journey this year.  We received considerable positive feedback with regard to the meetings with many parents acknowledging the work our teachers do with the students. This recognition of their hard work, in conjunction with your continued support of the school, is very much appreciated by our staff - thank you!

Talking of feedback, some of you completed the parent opinion survey in Term 4 last year. The results of this are below and can also be viewed in our Annual Report for 2023 which will be uploaded onto our website in May.

Parent Opinion Survey 2023

Although the results are very positive, the limited response rate makes it difficult to use the feedback to inform our school improvement planning. We are hoping that more parents take the opportunity to give their feedback when we disseminate the next survey. In the meantime, remember that we have a policy of continued open communication at West Balcatta and if you have a concern, you are welcome to make an appointment through the school office to chat with me.

Enjoy the Easter break and we will see the students back on Tuesday 16^th April.  

Caroline Booth

P&C Easter Raffle

Winner, winner - EGGS for Dinner!

With the help of our generous community, we were able to draw 54 prizes at our easter raffle! Thank you to everyone who donated Easter goods, baskets, bags, books and to those who entered the raffle. We raised over $600 for our school! The Easter Raffle is one of the favourite fundraisers for the year and we were delighted to see lots of happy bunnies hopping around the school with their Easter treats!

P&C Events Team

TA17 Assembly

TA17's Year Four students recently transformed times tables learning with a musical twist. Grooving to hits from Post Malone, Rick Astley, Miley Cyrus, and Ed Sheeran, they effortlessly mastered the 4, 6, 7, 8, and 9 times tables. Beyond memorisation, they discovered the rhythmic connections between math and music, emerging as confident mathematicians. This innovative approach not only sparked enthusiasm but also fostered a lasting love for learning through the power of music!

TA14 Assembly

TA14’s assembly was linked to Harmony Day to represent all the countries around the world. We spoke about Harmony Day throughout our spectacular assembly and how we respect all countries and religions. It is important to include everyone because that’s what Harmony Day is about!
Leila 

In acknowledgement of our multicultural school, our main performance was the song, I Am Australian. To include all people, we learnt how to sign the chorus because one of our classmates has deaf parents. I think it is important to learn as much AUSLAN as possible.
Daniel 

The assembly was about different cultures and religions. From Scotland, all the way to New Zealand. We respect all religions, and to acknowledge this, this was the theme for our assembly. Did you know? Each Scottish family or clan has their own tartan design.
Oscar 

Our assembly was about people’s families, where they’re from and what traditions and food that they have there. Harmony Day is when everyone celebrates their culture and where they are from. That is why we chose culture as our assembly. My family is from Italy, the country shaped like a boot! Italy has over 1500 lakes with delicious foods like pizza, pasta gelato (ice-cream) and tiramisu. I like how our assembly was about culture and how Harmony Day was right around the corner as well. I loved our assembly!
Keira 

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Reading Information Session for Parents

Last Wednesday, a Reading Information session was held for parents of Pre-Primary students. The focus was on helping parents understand the journey a child goes through to learn to read and then how parents can help support their child at home. We had a great turn out, some great questions were asked and answered and positive feedback was received. Thank you to those parents who came along and participated in such a successful session.

Aussie of the Month

Nathaniel, TA15

Nathaniel demonstrates remarkable compassion and care, consistently offering support and looking after fellow students without hesitation. His kindness, consideration, and insightfulness shine through in his interactions with others. Nathaniel's calm demeanour and maturity contribute to creating a harmonious school culture.

P&C Rainbow Disco Wrap Up!

If you ever wondered if WBPS students know how to PARTY, then wonder no more!

On Friday night, the assembly area came alive in a sea of rainbow costumes with energetic dance moves to match the fun tunes played by DJ El Cappuccino! Thank you to our amazing WBPS Community for your support. Without you, our school disco wouldn’t be possible. We appreciate the donated items to sell & volunteers on the night who assisted in running a successful event. Especially from Year 2 & Year 4 parent groups, as the designated volunteers for this event. We can’t wait to do it all over again in Term 4!

P&C Events Team

Harmony Day

Harmony day is a celebration of cultural diversity and a day of cultural respect for everyone who calls Australia home.

Our Harmony Day celebrations kicked off on Monday 11 March, when we had an incursion. Bernard Mangakahia came to our school and talked about all his fascinating different backgrounds and cultures. He showed us all these cool talented tricks and amazing traditional dances and items. One of the main dances was the Haka, which is a war dance that is used to fire up warriors on the battlefield. It's also used to celebrate, entertain, welcome and challenge visiting tribes. Maori people (usually women) also use Poi’s which is a ball on a rope, and you swing it around in different ways and movement. All the children from Pre-primary to year six were amazed by all the entertaining music family and culture he talked about.

On Thursday 21 March, students came to school wearing orange, the official Harmony Day colour. Classes learned about different cultures which make up our school and country. Every student in the school contributed to a mural which is on display in the assembly area.

Allegra (Minister for Culture & the Arts)

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GRIP Leadership Conference

On the 18th of March, Mrs Tanner and the Parliamentarians attended the Grip Student Leadership conference at Perth Convention Centre, where we learned many things, such as the sacrifices of a student leader, strategies for how to overcome tough situations and the importance of often overlooked and forgotten leadership skills. With this information, we can try and be the best parliamentarians that we can be. We look forward to making this school a better place with what we learnt!

Harry (Minister For Community Services) & Jack (Minister for the Environment)

Values at West Balcatta

Year 6 students in TA15 have been learning about the our school values, creating posters to be displayed around the school. At West Balcatta, we focus on a new value each fortnight.

Social and Civic Responsibility
Taking care of our community and being a good citizen is an important part of life. This means trying to make things better for everyone and helping others without hurting anyone's feelings or rights. We want you to learn about how our society works, like how we make decisions together and how we should treat people from different backgrounds. We also want you to follow rules that are fair and to stand up for what's right, so that everyone can have fulfilling and happy life.

Environmental responsibility
Everyone must play their part in taking care of our planet and all its living things . This means understanding that everything in nature is connected, including people and our surroundings. We should care about the plants, animals, and special places around us, like the beautiful places in Australia and the way we use things like water and energy. We want to use these things in a way that helps them grow back and last a long time, so that everyone and everything can enjoy a happy and healthy world.

2024 Shaun Tan Art Competition

A message from the Art Room...

Entries for the 2024 Shaun Tan Award for Young Artists open in just a few weeks! Now is the perfect time to start thinking about your work of art.

You may have an idea, you may have already started your artwork or you may just have a blank page - fear not, City of Subiaco will run a series of art workshops in April to inspire you and maybe even teach a new technique or two. 

You can deliver your entry (with entry form) to me in the Art Room by Monday 13 May.

Click on the link below for more information about the workshops and competition (including terms of entry). If you have any questions, please get in touch.

Ligita Abbott, Art Specialist

Reflection & Restoration @ WBPS

What if my child comes home with a ‘Reflection Sheet’?
Sometimes children make poor choices. It is a part of growing up and is an opportunity for growth. Students are often asked to reflect on their behaviour and how it affected other people, while thinking about what they might do differently in the future. This is sometimes in the form of a 'Reflection Sheet’, which may have been completed individually or with support. If your child comes home with one of these sheets, please discuss this with them, focusing on how they are going to mend relationships and behave in the future. Signing the sheet and returning it to the class teacher indicates to that it has been reinforced at home.

At West Balcatta, Restorative Practice is at the centre of our Behaviour Policy.  This approach helps to foster a sense of community and resolves conflicts in a way that promotes understanding, accountability and respect. In our primary school, we believe in the power of this approach to create a positive and supportive environment for our children to learn and thrive.

Restorative Practice focuses on building and maintaining strong relationships within our school community. It's about creating a culture where everyone feels valued, heard, and respected. Instead of simply punishing misbehaviour, Restorative Practice encourages dialogue and problem-solving. It's a shift from a punitive mindset to a more empathetic and collaborative one.

In our classrooms, Restorative Practice might involve daily check-ins where students have the opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings. It might also involve restorative discussions, where students and teachers come together to discuss issues, build relationships, and resolve conflicts.

As parents, you play a crucial role in supporting Restorative Practice at home. You can encourage your child to communicate openly, take responsibility for their actions, and show empathy towards others. By reinforcing these principles at home, you help create a seamless transition between school and home life.

Uniforms at West Balcatta

The school uniform is a visible representation of the standards expected of students and plays an important role in promoting a positive image of our school. Items can be ordered through Tudor Uniforms.

Please ensure your child/ren has the correct uniform items, particularly school hats! We have a number of students present to the office each day without a hat and have completely depleted our collection of spare school hats. For sun safety, students who do not have a hat are not permitted to play outside and must remain in the undercovered area during break times. 

In preparation for the cooler mornings, and an influx of jackets in lost property, please ensure that uniform items are labelled with your child's name! This makes it much easier for our Lost Property Managers to return them to the correct student. 

Our West Balcatta uniform consists of:

• Grey West Balcatta polo shirt
• Red school shorts/skorts (no shorter than mid-thigh) 
• Black tracksuit pants/leggings during cooler weather
• Grey West Balcatta jumper/jacket
• Red West Balcatta bucket hat (remember 'no hat, no play')
• Faction-coloured polo/t-shirt (on PE/Sports/Special days)
• Black West Balcatta leavers polo/jacket (Year 6 students only)
• Suitable footwear (sneakers preferred)
• Red, grey, black or white socks
• Red, grey, black, white or natural-coloured hair ties/accessories, where appropriate. Please note that hair below the collar should be tied up and hair falling over the face should be pinned back.

The following items have been identified as NOT acceptable for students to wear at school:

• Jewellery / Earrings (except for small, plain studs or sleepers)
• Make-up / Nail Polish
• Footwear that children cannot easily run in
• Denim or multi-coloured pants, shorts or skirts
• Bulky jackets, scarves or gloves (except for travelling to and from school in cold weather)
• Clothing with large logos or branding

Swimming Lessons - Final Reminder

West Balcatta are excited to have the opportunity to attend swimming lessons again this year! First up are lessons for our years five and six students. Lessons for these students begin on the 22^nd of April and end on the 3^rd of May. The following week, our Pre-primary to year four students (including all students in TA19) get their chance! These students will attend lessons from the 6^th to the 17^th of May.  Information, payment details and enrolment forms about this have been send home via Connect and in previous newsletters. If you do not have access to a printer, you are welcome to come and collect a hard copy of these notes from the office. Please pay via Qkr! and return the completed enrolment form tomorrow. 

During swimming lessons, students should wear their bathers to school underneath their school uniform. This will allow for a quick change at the pool. Students may also wear slip-on shoes/thongs to the pool (they will be given time to change into their trainers/regular school shoes once back at school). Students will need to bring a swimming bag packed with their underwear, towel, and goggles (optional). Please ensure your child’s belongings are clearly labelled with their name.  Once lessons are over, students will access supervised change rooms to change back into their school uniforms. Teachers will be with students at all times.

Students are welcome to pack a dressing gown, hooded towel or an additional jumper to wear to and from the pool. This will keep them warm and ensure they have a dry school jumper to put on when they return to class.

Swimming is hungry work! You might like to consider packing some extra recess or crunch and sip for your child during the two weeks of lessons.

Students are strongly encouraged to take part in swimming lessons as they make up the physical education program for the fortnight. However, if your child will not be taking part in the lessons. Please inform their class teacher and the school office. Class teachers attend swimming lessons with their class. Students who are not attending lessons will be split between other classes to be supervised while their teacher is away. They will be given a work pack to complete independently during this time.

Thank you for your support in getting your children organised for swimming lessons. We are looking forward to a fun and positive learning experience! Please see the office or your child’s teacher if you have any questions.

Keyed Up Music Lessons

Young Engineers After-School Club

Free Local Parenting Workshops