Bimbadeen Heights Principal Blog

Making plans for the 2010 school year is a process of determining what the resources are that we expect to have available and then allocating them to best suit the teaching and learning needs of the children.

The school leadership, in consultation with the staff, has been developing the 2010 staffing structure for quite some time, and is very confident that it meets the teaching and learning needs of the children of Bimbadeen Heights.

You will notice that there are some minor staffing changes; however we have ensured that there is at least one staff member remaining in each year level and a range of outstanding experienced teachers and outstanding younger teachers at each level of the school.  Two of our teachers are taking leave in 2010, Mrs Vivien Humble, our teacher-librarian, and Ms Hayley Coats, currently in Year 4.  Mrs Stacy Brookes will also be leaving to start a family very early in 2010.  Miss Kate Buzaglo has requested a move back into a classroom.  There is also a vacancy created by the conclusion of Miss Jessica Ferroni’s short-term teacher contract.  Mrs Jacqui Duncan’s short-term teacher contract will also conclude at the end the year.  (Mrs Duncan has been sharing a class with Mrs Bree King since August.)  We acknowledge the challenges of working on short term contracts and appreciate the contribution that Miss Ferroni and Mrs Duncan make to the children of Bimbadeen despite the uncertainty of tenure.  Miss Katie Glaser will be returning to Bimbadeen after a year’s absence.  Mrs Tania Maniscalchi is also returning from family leave part-time and will be sharing a class with Mrs Bree King.  The Music teacher role will be taken on by Ms Kim Russell, a very experienced and capable teacher who has done a lot of work here this year and who we are confident will provide a high quality music program for our students in 2010.  We have also provided for additional support in the year levels where the class sizes are expected to be the largest, around 25 children.

I am very pleased with this structure that ensures all teams are well balanced and in the best position to provide teaching and learning success for all children at Bimbadeen Heights next year.

If you have been around the school recently you may have noticed some unshaven, scruffy looking faces on the male staff members.  This is not a lowering of standards at Bimbadeen but the raising of important men’s health issues by supporting Movember.  The following is an extract from the Movember Foundation’s website:

Movember aims to change the face of men’s health and alter the way of thinking about men’s health by putting a fun twist on this very serious issue. By using the moustache as a catalyst we want to bring about change and give men the opportunity and confidence to talk about their health with friends and family.

Movember has an interest in all issues relating to men’s health but currently concentrates its efforts in Australia on raising awareness and funds for The Prostate Cancer Foundation and beyondblue: the national depression initiative.

We are not only raising the profile of men’s health by putting up with uncomfortable unshaven faces and partners who are keeping their distance, we are also aiming to raise money.  If you would like to donate please visit the Movember website and click on the Donate tab.    The name of our team is ‘The Bimba Blokes’.  You will notice that at this stage we haven’t done much more than raise the profile of Movember rather than raise much money so your support will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you Ross Barnes for setting this up and for encouraging our involvement and support of a very worthwhile cause.

It was great to be a part of the Bimbadeen Heights Trivia Night on Saturday night. The organising group led by School Council President Lynne Brodie, is to be commended for their work. The quizmaster, George Apeitos, was brilliant and kept the evening moving along with good humour and good trivia. I was fortunate to sit with the young teachers who knew every movie and every song!

It is a privilege to be entrusted with the children of this community and it was also a privilege to enjoy a social night out with their parents and other community members.

We don’t have the financial report yet but if we measure the success by the number of people there, the enjoyment and laughter, being part of a great school community and the volunteers that put it together, it was a huge success.

Congratulations to all the winners and a huge thank you to all the businesses who donated so many wonderful prizes.

My experience has shown me that if there is one topic that generates anxiety for families it is the discussions around what class their child will be in next year.  Some parents have the school structure all planned out in their own minds, which teacher will be teaching which class, how many classes there will be at each year level, who is leaving, who is returning, and so on.  A lot of unnecessary time is wasted however, worrying about things that are out of their control and may not eventuate.   Parents of course are just wanting the best for their children and want to make sure their child is happy at school.  This is normal and the way it should be.  Unfortunately though, some of the anxiety of parents is passed on to the children and this makes the transition to a new year level even more challenging for them.

It is also in the best interests of the principal and the staff to have children who are happy at school as we know that these children do better at school.  This is why we invest a great deal of time to ensure that the school structure and the placement of children in classes with the best combination of friends and teacher is as good as we can do.  I wish it was easy however, as there can often be conflicting needs and requests.  Sometimes it may not be until much later in the year that we have an accurate idea of the full staff profile from whom to choose.  Rest assured that we do give this plenty of time as these decisions are amongst the most important ones we make.

Last week in the school newsletter I invited parents to have input into this process at Bimbadeen Heights and I encourage you to read that and take advantage of this if you think there are issues we may not be aware of.  I then encourage you to trust that we will do the very best we can and ask that you work with us to support your child with positive messages to help them cope with the transition to a new year level, a new teacher and new friends.  It is a major focus of our work this term.

What do you think?  I would like this blog to be interactive so feel free to post a comment.

The term break seems a distant memory now as we are now fully into teaching and learning at Bimbadeen Heights.  The Year 5’s are at Swan Hill for their school camp this week with a history focus.  It was delightful to feel the excitement in the air and the see the joy on the faces of the children as they prepared to board the  buses yesterday morning.  There was also the odd tear here and there  in the eyes of parents who were fare-wellingtheir children for four days which was also lovely to see.  They all arrived safely and reports this morning from the staff after the first night away were all positive.  During the camp they will participate in an underground mine tour in Bendigo, spend time at the Pioneer Settlement in Swan Hill that includes Aboriginal cultural studies, as well as a Sound and Light show in the evening and take a cruise on a paddle steamer on the Murray River.

They are due to arrive back at school, tired yet with broader minds, between 4:30 and 5:00 on Friday afternoon.

It was a very busy final week of term, the highlight of which was the Year 5/6 Production.  It was impressive to see how the Bimbadeen team of staff and many parents worked so hard to put the showcase of talented and excited children on stage.  It was a wonderful coming together of happy and excited children, proud and appreciative parents and relieved teachers!  Well done Bimbadeen Heights!

The end of the ‘winter term’ always comes with an increased number of tired children as well who do not always make the best decisions or judgement calls.  This means that the adults in our school community must ‘lift our game’ in order to deal with the challenges the children present in the most appropriate and positive manner.  Generally large amounts of patience and understanding are what’s needed.

It’s certainly been a busy third term and the final term is shaping up to be just as busy if not busier.  The big news in the final week of term was the confirmation that work will start on our new building project during fourth term.  Whilst this will bring significant disruption and organisational challenges for us as well as change the face of our school with classrooms being relocated, it will be very exciting to see new development happening here.

I trust that everyone has a safe and enjoyable term break.  Make the most of the change of routines to do special things with your children.  They will be grown up and left home before you know it and everyone reports that the ‘Primary School years’ are amongst the most enjoyable and special times spent with their children.

As for me, I’ll be doing things with the family, reading and relaxing and hoping for a Saints Premiership!  See you on Monday October 5.

I spent a couple of hours at the full dress rehearsal of our annual Year 5/6 school production at Karralyka Theatre in Ringwood today.  The cast and crew did two full ‘run-throughs’, the second being performed in front of our excited and enthusiastic Prep children.  When they returned to school they gave the performance very positive reviews!

I never cease to be impressed and amazed at how children excel when they put on make-up, a costume and stand on stage in the blaze of stage lighting.  Today was no exception.  To see the smiles and joy on their faces as they left the stage was simply wonderful and cannot be replicated in any other way. 

Huge credit must go to Kate Buzaglo and her team who have pulled all this together.  They have auditioned, rehearsed, encouraged, supported, found roles for children who so desperately needed to be in the spot-light, and patiently coerced children, (sometimes in a dramatic, performing arts type of way!),  to perform to their very best.  I am very proud of every one involved, children, teachers and the parents who have helped out in so many ways, not the least being, supporting and encouraging their children. 

Well done Bimbadeen and “Chookas!” to all cast and crew for the shows on Tuesday and Wednesday night this week.

It was great to get together with over twenty Dads on Tuesday evening this week to enjoy a BBQ tea, a drink, a DVD (“What Kids Really Need From Their Dads”) and a chat about the importance of being a Dad.  We shared some of our Dad Stories and had plenty of laughs and celebrated the joys and challenges of being significant male role models for the next generation.  Four Dads also took home toolkits won in the raffle.  Comments at the end of the evening were very supportive and indicated that we really should do more of these type of activities for Dads as we certainly will.

At the end of the evening I shared the results of the online Dad Survey that we did here with many of our Year 3 – 6 students.  Children were asked to respond to a range of optional answers to the following three questions.  The top six answers from Bimbadeen Children to these questions were as follows:

Things I like doing with my Dad

1. Going to the football and Watching TV (Equal top answers)
2. Kicking the football
3. Playing Sport
4. Doing stuff outside
5. Laughing

I wish my Dad…

1. Had more holidays
2. Didn’t work so much
3. Was rich
4. Would spend more time with me
5. Would give me more pocket money

The Perfect Dad would…

1. Be my Dad
2. Love you
3. Be Fun and Be Happy (Equal)
4. Spoil me
5. Be funny

Special thanks must go to Cath Buckland, our Wellbeing leader, for her assistance with organising the evening, and staff members, Ray Legione, Garry Fowler, Malcolm Rosendale and John Van for their assistance and contribution and to all the Dads who came out on a wet and dreary evening.

I recieved an email from one of our School House Captains this week and thought it was well worth promoting.  Alisha is an ouststanding young student with a world of opportunities ahead of her.  The challenge of diabetes is one that she really does not deserve.  I encourage you to support this cause.

Hello, I am Alisha, I am 12 years old. I am raising funds to find a cure for Type 1 diabetes, I have had it since I was 9 years old. I don’t like having diabetes, I get really down about it a lot and I really want it to go away. I’m sad. I get really annoyed with it and now I can’t be bothered doing finger pricks and needles any more but mum says that if I don’t I will die so I have to but it really, really annoys me. I bet if u guys had diabetes u would want to find a cure for it. So please help me. If one day they found a cure for Diabetes it would be my dream come true, I would be so happy. But at the moment it is still only a dream, so please help!

 You can have a look at the walk to cure diabetes web page that mum made and please…even if it is five cents…..make a donation……..every bit counts!

 http://walk.jdrf.org.au/VIC/Fionaryan/

 From Alisha

On Tuesday we had a visitor from South Africa, Valanga Khoza.  Valanga is a singer, dancer, musician, story teller and author.  He spoke to all children throughout the day and had every one of them enthralled for over an hour.  Valanga had musical instruments from Africa that most of the children had never seen nor heard before.  He had a great gift of being able to remember children’s names and incorporate them into his stories or songs.  I sat in on his sessions with over 180 of our Year 5 & 6 students and I have rarely seen such a large group so totally engrossed.  He never once used an amplifier and yet you could hear a pin drop as children hung on his every word!  His visit was a highlight of our Literacy and Numeracy week.