House T-Shirts now available at PSW!

House T-shirts for our rebranded Houses, which has been part of our House Spirirt journey this year, are now in stock at the Kew East PSW store located at 12 Strathalbyn St, Kew East VIC 3102.

Alternatively you can make an appointment to visit the store or purchase uniforms online via https://www.psw.com.au/schools/ivanhoe-east-primary-school.html.

School Council approved this option of T-shirt due to its lower cost in comparison to other options and the practicality of a coloured T-shirt being a sufficient alternative, please note that this T-shirt is not compulsory. The next house event will be on Friday 8^th of December where students will be encouraged to wear their house colours. 

IEPS Big Night Out

I would like to personally, and on behalf of the wider IEPS communtiy thank Amanda Lynch, Kate Brennan, Jo Cunningham, Sammi Gieschen, Jess Milesi, Jess Provan, Donna White and Jo Convery for all of the time and effort that went into our annual fundraising event. From all reports the night was a successful and enjoyable evening for all that attended. A big thank-you to everyone that got involved in the online silent auction. So far an incredible $13,000 has been raised. The money raised will be going towards improving the physical environment of the school, the next project in the works will be to improve the outside basketball courts with either an astroturf/rubberising approach.

School Musical – (Sounds of Summer Music Festival)

On 30th November we will be having our summer music festival. This festival will occur on-site at IEPS either on the oval or the basketball courts. There will be a Stage/AV/Lighting for performances, each grade will be doing their own performance and we encourage every family to attend as this is our annual community event. We will also have picnic and seated areas as well as a range of food trucks and beverages on sale. The event is currently scheudeld to start at 5.30pm and will run for approximatley two hours. This will be a ticketed event, we are currently working out the cost of the tickets. (It is not a specific fundraising event, so the ticket prices will be based on covering the costs of equipment and set up, which should hopefully minimise the cost) Our students are currently practicing their songs & dances in class and we are looking forward to this great community event. So, please 'Save the Date' and we will share more information as it comes to hand. 

Parent Requests for 2024 Classes - (Closes Friday 27^th of October) & Student Learning Friends

As we continue to meet the needs of the students at our school we have already begun the complex task of workforce planning for the 2024 year; considering budgets, teacher requests, staffing changes and student numbers.

This is the time of the year when we start to explore class structures and carefully consider the best resourcing to meet student needs. As mentioned above, in order to do this we need to have an accurate understanding of student numbers in each level.

If you know of any families who will be moving into the area and will have children enrolling at Ivanhoe East Primary School for next year, please ask them to make urgent contact with the school. Likewise, please let us know if your family is moving and/or your children will not be returning to IEPS in 2024. 

Throughout November and early December, we will be working on our class structures and student combinations for next year. A great deal of thought, planning and time goes into placing students into classes. Every effort is made to place each child in a learning environment that is engaging, caring and productive and each student will be able to nominate up to 5 learning friends for their 2024 class, each student will be guaranteed to receive at least 1 learning friend in their 2024 class.

As you may understand, the allocation of students to new classes is an intricate task and one that requires patience and a great deal of thought. The method used to create classes at IEPS is quite an in-depth analytical process that involves a multitude of variables. These variables include each student’s academics, learning needs, student pairings, behavioral aspects, parent requests, friendship requests and their specific classroom teacher’s observations and judgements. Rest assured even through this is a complex process as mentioned above each student will have at least one of their requested learning friends in their 2024 class.

Information from parents is welcomed as part of the decision-making processes, and we now invite parents to write to us about any requests they may have for their child’s educational needs. We do not accept requests for placement with individual teachers, however, we do take into consideration relevant information, based on educational needs, which can help us with the placement process.

Requests are to be addressed directly to Mr. Boyle and will be considered up until Friday 27^th October. Please email directly to tom.boyle@education.vic.gov.au with any concerns around specific educational needs in relation to class placement. Only Letters received by 5pm Friday October 27th will be considered. If you have previously emailed your child’s classroom teacher, you will need to re-email this letter addressed to myself and sent directly to me. If you would like to have a face-to-face conversation please don’t hesitate to contact me and we can arrange a time.

Learning Friends

Starting this week all students will be selecting five learning friends who they feel that they work well with in the classroom. Prior to this there will be in depth discussions in each class about ‘who and what is a learning friend?’

• Students MUST nominate 5 friends.
• Students are required to select at least one student from another grade.
• Students will be required to handwrite the first and last name and current grade of their learning friends on the provided form. Junior teachers can assist their students.
• Class Creator does weigh their friend selections according to preference, so mention to students that the order is taken into account but that it does not ensure you will get a particular friend over another.

We understand that there is still quite a bit of illness around our school and some student absences, so we have forward planned for students to complete their learning friends as early as possible so we can ensure we have all students’ selections before the end of week 6 to meet our 2024 transition timeline

Please note that while we take any information that you provide into consideration, the final decisions regarding your child’s placement rest with the teaching staff and leadership team. Furthermore please note that once classes are finalised there will be no changes made to those class strucutres.

Athletics Update

The Athletics season is drawing to a close with all events but State completed. Once again, IEPS has had a great year on the Athletics track with strong representation at District, Division, and Region levels. Well done to all students involved; and from parents to teachers, thanks for all of those that have supported and assisted along the way. A special mention to those students that represented IEPS at Region, including Emily Convery, Dominic Junot, Isabella Lagogiannis, and Alexa Simpson. Furthermore, a big congratulations to Heidi Mitchell, who will be competing at State in the coming weeks for the 1500m, and to Lachlan Morris, who will be contending at State in both shot put and discus.

A fantastic effort and all the best to Heidi and Lachlan at the next level!

Second Hand Uniforms

IEPS Second Hand Uniforms is located upstairs in the gym. The Second Hand Uniform shop will be open each Monday and Friday morning from 8.30am - 9.15am (45 minutes) for you to purchase or swap over any items you might need.

Items are $5 each and payment is strictly card only.

2^nd Hand Uniform Donations

Currently accepting all donations. In high demand: summer school dresses (with white trim only) and polo shirts. We currently have lots of jumpers (all styles), crew neck t-shirts, shorts, skorts and track pants. We also have limited school bags and reader bags available. Please double check all donations are washed and clear of stains and rips or holes. Only IEPS branded jumpers and t-shirts can be accepted. Uniform Swap is up and running. Feel free to stop by with your donation and take something in return. 

Reminders

Are you leaving IEPS in 2024?

We ask that you let us know if you are moving or have enrolled in another school in 2024. We require this information as soon as possible to establish grade structures for the start of the new school year. If your child is currently in Grades Foundation – 5, and will not be at Ivanhoe East in 2024, please notify the school office in writing as soon as possible.

Assemblies Term 4

This term we will be continuing with fortnightly on-site assemblies, with the alternating week being an IEPS news episode. This week will be our 1^st IEPS news episode for the term and our below are the dates for our on-site assemblies

• Friday 20^th of October
• Friday 3^rd of November
• Friday 17^th of November
• Friday 1^st of December
• Friday 15^th of December (Final assembly of the year)

Furthermore, we will be changing our student of the week process. We will be moving to a student of the fortnight where at least 1 student will be awarded with a ‘student of the week,’ recognition at assembly. At the conclusion of assembly those students will be invited to come up to the front of the gymnasium to get a group photo with Mr Boyle, which will be placed into the following bulletin, parents are also welcome to come up the front to take this photo as well.

Reminder No Hat – No Play Term 4

In Term 4 it is expected that all students wear a hat while outside at recess/lunchtime irrespective of the weather. Our school policy states that if a child isn’t wearing a hat they are required to sit under an allocated shady part of the school for the duration of recess or lunch, in other words ‘No Hat, No Play.’ Please ensure your child brings a hat to school! 

Lunchtime Clubs update for Term 4

The PAG representatives surveyed Foundation to Year 6's students and then collated the data to select the top 4 lunchtime clubs voted upon by students. The PAG representatives have discussed some amendments and scheduling changes that are reflective of feedback from the students. Please note, Tech club will be run by Ms. Gould and will involve the use of proper tech skills being taught. Please find attached below the timetable for Lunchtime Clubs starting Week 2 of Term 4.