Latest News

From the Principal

Dear Waddington families,

Happy New Year to you all and welcome back to the new school year of 2024.

This is my first newsletter as Principal of Waddington, and I am thrilled to be leading the school. There have been too many improvements and positive changes made by Jemima Tomlinson to even begin to mention. I would like to assure you all that I will be continuing to lead the school along this pathway and grow from the strong foundation that we have in place. The message that I would like you to keep is that of our school vision:

We are a Connected Community striving to provide quality learning opportunities through evidence- based teaching, leading our students to reach their highest potential in all they do.

As we begin the journey into 2024, there are new additions to our staff. We welcome them all to our Waddington family:

There are also new additions to our programs that support our students to reach their potential. We are now officially a Story Dog School. Every Tuesday, Bailey and Caitlin will be joining us to work with individual students in the library. Their mission is to make reading fun for children so that they become confident, lifelong readers.

PE Activities for 2024

Keith Milner, PE Specialist will be facilitating our Running Club before school on Mondays. This will be for general health and fitness, but also to prepare the students for a Cross Country Carnival that will be held in Term 3 in addition to our Faction Carnival.  There will also be a Table Tennis Club for those students in Years 3-6, also on Mondays but after school. This program is fully funded by our Sporting Schools Grant.

Grant successful – Art Project for Waddington students in 2024

During the holidays, I received notification that an application Jemima and I submitted to the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries (DLGSC) Culture and the Arts WA Creative Learning had been successful. The funding will cover the cost of an Artist in Residence to attend 25 days across 2024 to work on an Art Project with all our students. Jodie Davidson will be here on Wednesdays. The focus for project is the bushland, using natural materials, and exploring processes to effect change. Where possible, the intersection of Science and Art will be explored. This will culminate in an Art Exhibition that will be set up in the Undercover Area on the evening of our Community Christmas Carols.

12 Buckets

12 Bucket will now be with us for three days a week. This means that we can offer places to more students. The mentorship, resilience and relationship building plays a huge part in building a child’s capacity to be able to learn.

After School STEM club

SciTech are holding an after-school STEM club for students in Years 4-6 on Fridays for Term 1. This will be held in the library. Consent forms will need to be signed by parents for students to participate.

Smith Family School Scholarship Fund

This is available to all students whose carer holds a Concession/Pension Card and attendance is at 85% or above. This fund will support you with a payment of $478 per year for a primary student. If attendance is maintained, the Scholarship will remain with your child throughout High School, paying $772 per year.

A final note, please remember that we now have Their Care providing Out of Hours School Care on our site. For families with a Concession Card, Grandparent carers, parents who volunteer at the school, the cost is almost zero. If you wish to book or enquire, please telephone their number.

And so, we move forward as a Connected Community into 2024. I wish you all well, as we all work together with the common vision of leading our students to reach their highest potential.

Kind regards,

Katherine Chivers 

Principal

From the Administration Team

Term 1 Planner

The term planner is updated regularly and below are some important dates to be aware of for first few weeks of term 1 2024.

Please refer to the Term Planner page under the ‘Community’ tab for the most up-to-date events for term 1 2024 (but this may be subject to change so please check regularly).

Important Dates

TERM 1 2024

6 February 2024 – Safer Internet Day

7 February 2024 – Artist in Resident (Art Project with all Waddington students)

9 February 2024 – Scitech STEM after school club 3pm – 4pm (Years 4 – 6)

12 February 2024 – 10am Chung Wah Lion Dance performance

12 February 2024 – Parent Information Session – Room 1 (after school bell)

13 February 2024 – Parent Information Session – Room 5 (after school bell)

14 February 2024 – Parent Information Session – Room 9 (after school bell)

14 February 2024 – Artist in Resident (Art Project with all Waddington students)

15 February 2024 – Parent Information Session – Room 4 (after school bell)

16 February 2024 – Parent Information Session – Room 8 (after school bell)

16 February 2024 – Scitech STEM after school club 3pm – 4pm (Years 4 – 6)

20 February 2024 – School Board Meeting

21 February 2024 – Artist in Resident (Art Project with all Waddington students)

23 February 2024 – Scitech STEM after school club 3pm – 4pm (Years 4 – 6)

Breakfast Club – Thank you IGA Balga and Woolworths Mirrabooka!

We would like to acknowledge with thanks IGA Balga and Woolworths Mirrabooka for supporting our schools breakfast club, our students appreciate your support!

Community Notices

Saver Plus Program

Saver Plus supports eligible families to take some control of their finances by offering a matched savings incentive and financial education workshops.

If parents commit to saving up to $50 a month for 10 months, ANZ will match their savings up to $500 for families to put towards school uniforms, stationery, camps, laptops, sports fees and music lessons.

To learn more about Saver Plus attend one of our online Information Sessions: Register here.

 

From the Principal

Dear Waddington families,

Reflecting on the fact that this is the final newsletter of 2023 is truly hard to believe! What an exceptional year it has been. The warmth and joy radiated during the Christmas Carols on Friday night were truly heartwarming. Our community, filled with the most supportive and caring individuals, came together for a memorable evening. Witnessing the smiles on the faces of our students and their families made it one of our favorite nights. Here’s to a year filled with shared moments and continued community spirit!

I have some important news to share with you all which is very bittersweet. I am the recommended applicant for the Principal role at Swan View Primary School. As you all know I live in the hills area and this school is 5 minutes from my house. If all goes well, on Thursday it will be official but I wanted to give you all as much notice as possible as I know this will be a shock that I will not be continuing here at Waddington. Ms Katherine Chivers will be taking on my role in 2024 until the position is advertised permanently. I think you can all appreciate how much I love this school and I have been committed to the students and community. I know that it will be in strong hands with Ms Chivers and the wonderful staff here who will continue with our vision of Strive to Succeed. Over my time as Principal I have wanted to ensure that the school has robust plans in place so that no matter who steps into the role of Principal, that the vision of the school continues. I have done this and I want to reassure you that the progress we have made as a school will continue. My last day will be on Tuesday the 12^th December, so please come and see me before then if you have any concerns or questions. 

To let you know additional some staffing news, we have finished our PE process and are excited to announce Mr Keith Milner will be joining us. Mr Milner is an experienced PE teacher who also works at Butler Primary School. He already has lots of ideas on how to make our PE program even better and came in last week to meet students. Mrs Ami Nguyen will also be joining us in Semester 1 as teacher of PP/1. Mrs Nguyen is an experienced teacher who is currently teaching at the Language Development Centre. On Friday this week our students will be having a transition day where they will be moving to the class they will be in for 2024. Mrs Nguyen will be joining us so that our students can meet her. Also, due to our increasingly busy office, Miss Chloe Williamson will be working in the front office 2 days a week to assist Mrs Jones. Our students already know and love Miss Williamson so this is wonderful news for all of us. 

As we reflect on the remarkable year that was, it is with immense pride and joy that we share the outstanding achievements and exciting developments that defined our journey at Waddington Primary School for 2023.

1. TheirCare Outside of School Hours Care (OHSC): A New Chapter Begins In response to the community’s eager anticipation, we are thrilled to announce that negotiations with TheirCare OHSC were successfully concluded. Starting Term 1, 2024, we will introduce after-school care—an eagerly awaited addition that brings convenience and support to our families. The potential for expansion to before-school care and holiday care exists, and interested families were encouraged to contact the front office to secure a spot. Waddington PS has proudly become the sole school in Koondoola offering this valuable service.

2. NAPLAN Triumphs: Exceeding Expectations in Literacy and Numeracy Our students once again showcased their academic prowess in this year’s NAPLAN assessments. Across Reading, Writing, Spelling, and Numeracy, our results not only met but surpassed expectations, outperforming like schools. Notably, in Year 5 Spelling, our students were a mere 0.62 points away from the National Average, a testament to the dedication of our teachers and the effectiveness of our teaching methods.

3. 12 Buckets Program Launch: Transforming Lives in Waddy Hall The commencement of the 12 Buckets program in Waddy Hall marked a significant milestone for Waddington PS. This transformative mentoring program, in collaboration with the school, focused on enhancing students’ well-being, confidence, and decision-making skills. The newly transformed space was a testament to our commitment to providing holistic support for our students.

4. New Class Addition: Meeting Growing Needs For the first time in years, Waddington PS is expanding its capacity to accommodate our increasing numbers. We are excited to announce the addition of a new class, bringing our total to five classes. This adjustment allows us to provide an even more personalized and enriching learning experience for our students, ensuring they continue to thrive academically and personally.

5. Sustainable School: Solar Panels and Resurfaced Basketball Court Waddington PS continues its commitment to creating an inspiring and sustainable learning environment. This year, we took a significant step towards sustainability by installing solar panels on our campus. This green initiative not only aligns with our environmental values but also serves as a valuable educational tool for our students. Additionally, we are thrilled to announce that the Department is set to resurface our second basketball court, further contributing to the aesthetics and functionality of our school facilities. These endeavors reflect our ongoing commitment to providing a high quality educational experience for our students, both inside and outside the classroom.

As we reflect on these achievements and look ahead to 2024, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to the entire Waddington PS community. Your support and dedication were integral to our success. Together, we Strived for Success! 

Kind regards,

Jemima Tomlinson 

Principal

Friendly Schools Plus

Navigating children’s friendships can be VERY tough! It can be hard for us as parents to know what to say when our children feel they have no friends, or are having disagreements. Friendly Schools Plus has some sound advice to help us with our children in these difficult times:

From the Administration Team

Term 4 Planner

The term planner is updated regularly and below are some important dates to be aware of for the 2 weeks of this term and the first week of term 1 2024.

Please refer to the Term Planner page under the ‘Community’ tab for the most up-to-date events for term 4 and the start of 2024 (but this may be subject to change so please check regularly).

Important Dates

7 December 2023 – Year 6 Celebration – Outback Splash (9am to 3pm)

11 December 2023 – Graduation/Book Awards and Morning Tea (9am to 10.30am)

13 December 2023 – Graduation Dinner (5.30pm start)

14 December 2023 – Term 4 ends for students

TERM 1 2024

29 January 2024 – Staff Development Day (SDD) – Students do not attend

30 January 2024 – Staff Development Day (SDD) – Students do not attend

31 January 2024 – Term 1 2024 commences for students

The importance of Water!

Breakfast Club – Thank you IGA Balga!

We would like to acknowledge with thanks IGA Balga for supporting our schools breakfast club, our students appreciate your support!

Room 1 – Prehistoric days!

As the end of the year approaches, it’s hard to believe how much our Year One and Two students have accomplished… And this last term has been no different, jam-packed with learning! Room One, you are amazing!

Roaring into action, our classroom stepped back in time to the prehistoric days where students worked on many activities all about dinosaurs. They were even paleontologists for the day and embarked on a sweet adventure, fossicking for chocolate chips in a cookie—because who said paleontology can’t be delicious?

In literacy, our young explorer put their creative minds to work by innovating a Talk for Writing text centered around a fierce dinosaur hiding in a dark and gloomy cave. The narratives they created were nothing short of dino-mite! Then just as things started to settle down, George the Dragon snuck into our classroom, left a letter, and hid his precious golden stones one last time. But wait, could there be a mischievous Christmas elf adding a sprinkle of magic to our classroom? The mystery unfolds!

In our Reading Daily Review sessions, Room One has been working hard on their literary skills. From letter patterns to nouns, verbs, adverbs, and adjectives, building up their vocabulary and high-frequency words, to writing and reading sentences for fluency, their progress has been something to be proud of.

In Mathematics this term Students have been working on division and multiplication problems through sharing, dividing sets of objects, and creating arrays. Year Twos are gearing up for their two, three, five, and ten times tables, all while mastering addition and subtraction sums. Students have also delved into investigating, classifying, and constructing 3D shapes. They even went on a 3D hunt…shapes are everywhere around us! Year One’s and Two’s also enjoyed programming Beebots to help them explore positional and directional language. Beeebots were zipping around our floor, moving in all directions!

In Geography this term, our little explorers enjoyed learning about our world and Australia, discovering our location, exploring different places, and the connections to other places. They absolutely loved the song ‘Down Under’!

Room One students should be truly proud of all they have achieved this term and this year. It has been an absolutely wonderful year, you are all little stars!

Community Notices

BRICKS 4 KIDZ Summer School Holiday Workshops

These holiday programs are designed for kids ages 5 -12 and there are many themes to inspire creativity and fun.

Online enrolment is at the following link: 

https://www.bricks4kidz.com.au/perth-midland/program-events/school-holiday-workshops-activities-lego-bricks/embed/#?secret=LLYBx2iRbl

The Summer School Holiday Workshops are located at the following locations:

• Swan Valley Anglican Community School @ Aveley
• BRICKS 4 KIDZ City West @ West Perth

Learning to use the toilet!

Please see below the details of a free online session tonight for parents of toddlers who are still learning to use the toilet.

 

Better Health Program – Term 1 2024

A 10-week free healthy lifestyle program for Western Australian children 6-12 years who are above a healthy weight and their parents and carers. 

📆 Starts 2^nd of Feb

📍 Online or in person at local communities (Cockburn, Cannington, Port Kennedy, Osborne Park)

👉 https://betterhealthprogram.org/wa or 1300 822 953 

💸 FREE 

Better Health Program focuses on healthy eating, physical activity, sleep and screentime for children in their primary years. Children receive free resources and families are support by a dietician/nutritionist each week. 

If you need guidance around creating healthy habits then this is for you.