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Welcome to the Staff Memo

Virtue of the Week:

GENEROSITY

Owls in our playground - Paulina Gil De Matos

Monday 12 December - Year 6 Grad Ceremony
Tuesday 13 December - Kindy Orientation | Music Under the Stars (Selected Yr 3-6)
Wednesday 14 December - Last Day of PP - Y2 Swimming. | Y6 Graduation Lunch

Thursday 15 December - Christmas Carols | Y6 Clap Out | Last Day for Students
Friday 16 December - Trade Off Day

CELEBRATIONS AND THANK YOUS

Thanks Annemarie and Paula for stepping in (up) to help oversee classes when we were a teacher down.
Thank you to the Year 6 team for your awesome goodbye poem to Jane G and Tom
Well done Jeff for the wonderful assembly item on Friday - very funny!
Thank you to Katie for all her work in organising Music Under the Stars, it was a fantastic evening!

PRINCIPALS PEN

Congratulations, everyone, we made it!

On behalf of the leadership team I want to say thank you and well done for getting to the end of the most disruptive year we’ve ever had in education. It’s hard to believe in Term 1 we were having to submit to the Department every student who contracted COVID. We couldn’t meet face to face, and mandatory isolation was required if you tested positive to a PCR (remember lining up in traffic to get one of those??). Oh, and RATs were $40 a pop. There was a week in Term 2 where the number of staff members absent each day was 16 or higher. On top of that we had changes in school leadership, including an acting principal and MCS as well as changes to the team structure in order to support teachers and students to a higher degree. It’s fair to say 2022 has been a year like no other.

Thank you for trusting me with leading the school. I’m convinced we’re on the right track to realise our strategic statement: To maintain Mount Hawthorn Primary School’s distinctive breadth of student opportunities whilst enhancing student outcomes through whole school, high-impact teaching practices. We will also continue to prioritise social and emotional well-being, differentiated learning and collaborative community partnerships to support all students. In 2023 we will continue on this journey and I’m looking forward to working with you all on this.

I’m also looking forward to enjoying Christmas lunch and drinks with you Friday afternoon! From my family to yours, have a relaxing holiday break. To those moving on from Mount Hawthorn I wish you all the best in your new ventures. To everyone else, see you back at school in the new year.

- Leon

GAZETTED START DATES FOR 2023 AND SSDs

School support staff return on Wednesday, 25 January
School leadership staff return on Friday, 27 January
Teachers and EAs return on Monday, 30 January
Students return on Wednesday, 1 February

School development days are on Monday and Tuesday and an agenda will be sent to all staff in the last week of the holidays. The agenda will provide for all teachers to have a half-day block for their own planning and preparation time in the afternoon on Tuesday.

The other SDDs for 2023, as approved by our Schools Board, are:

Friday, 3 March (leads into Labour Day long weekend)
Monday, 24 April (between school holidays and ANZAC Day)
Friday, 2 June (leads into WA Day long weekend)
Friday, 15 December (final day of school)

Thank you

POKEMON CARDS

We have had some problems with students bringing Pokemon cards to school. Some cards have been stolen and arguments are occurring with trading. Please speak to your students and remind them that Pokemon cards are to be left at home. We have also put a community notice onto Compass as well so that parents are aware that the students should not be bringing their cards to school.

Thanks - Jen

END OF THE WEEK TIMELINE FOR CLASSES

Thank you to staff for initiating the changing of classroom planning for 2023. Please liaise with relevant staff to commence movement across the classroom.

Please do not use the school as storage. If items belong to you and you will not be using them in 2023 do not keep them at school. They need to go!

KRIS KRINGLE

This Friday (see below for plan) is still technically a work morning but let's try and keep it fun and set the tone for the afternoon festivities. Bree will be running a Kris Kringle at 10.30am in the staffroom. We’d love as many as possible to join in. Bring along a pressie approximate value $15 and wrap in Christmas paper.

More details in relation to the policy and guidelines provided by Bree on the day.

FRIDAY 16 DEC - PLAN FOR TRADE OFF

8.00am Coffee van onsite to make your morning easy!

8.50am Whole staff meeting in Year 6 rooms, “Reflection of the Year”

9.30am Classrooms or duck to the shops to get Kris Kringle pressie.

10.30am Kris Kringle - staffroom

12.00pm Depart for lunch

Thank you - Perisse

MHPS WALL OF KINDNESS

This is up and running. All staff (including regular relief staff) have a bag. Today I’ve put a heap of little tags in a basket on the staffroom table for you to write on the back of and ‘post.’ A simple note of appreciation or recognition is all that is needed. A small gesture can be large to someone else. Time to make someone smile in the last week of Term … Happy Week 10!

Thanks - Bree

PIGEON HOLES AND FRIDGES

Please clean out your pigeon holes (so we can relabel them next year - you may not get the same one) and any of your personal items from the staffroom fridges by the end of Thursday senior lunch so we can clean the fridges. Anything left will be discarded.

Thanks - Leilani

LAST CALL FOR SHAPING MINDS

Due to the great success we had with our first cohort of 4 teachers in 2022, the school will once again partner with Shaping Minds in 2023.

The school will fund at least 10 teachers to complete the full workshop series and associated in-school coaching with Jared and Jordan. To submit an expression of interest for one of these positions, please email Cailie.Spencer@education.wa.edu.au or complete this online form by 9am Wednesday.

FLASH MOB

I know you have all been practising hard……..let's get together Wednesday after school for a quick rehearsal. We can meet at 3.30 in the hangar. Quick run through is all.

Thanks - Cailie

ADMIN

Monday - Leon, Perisse, Cailie, Jen
Tuesday - Leon, Cailie, Jen
Wednesday - Leon, Cailie, Perisse, Bree
Thursday - Leon, Cailie, Perisse, Cherrie
Friday - Trade Off