flinderspark.ps@education.wa.edu.au

Navigator Newsletter

Term 1 Issue 2

Principal's Message

Wanjoo Welcome Breakfast
What a great way to start the day—sharing breakfast with family and friends at Flinders Park! We welcomed over 250 students and their families on Friday morning. It was lovely to see our school community come together in such a positive way.

Congratulations to Our Faction Captains!
We are proud to introduce and congratulate our newly elected faction captains Zayne, Viola, Bailey, Rose, Haiden, Caden, Oscar and Alexis. These students have demonstrated leadership, teamwork, and a commitment to fostering school spirit. We look forward to seeing them lead their factions with enthusiasm and integrity throughout the year.

Swimming Carnival Success!
Our recent Swimming Carnival was a fantastic event, showcasing the talent, determination, and sportsmanship of our students. It was wonderful to see students cheering on their teammates, acknowledging the achievements of others, and participating in their events with pride. Congratulations to all competitors on their efforts and achievements! A huge thank you to our staff and parent volunteers who helped make the day a success. Your support and dedication ensured a well-organised and enjoyable event for all. We appreciate the time and effort you put into creating such a positive experience for our students.

The Interschool Swim Carnival will be held on Tuesday 1 April 2025.

Year 6 Camp
Our Year 6 students are eagerly anticipating Camp Quaranup in Week 6. This exciting experience will help build confidence, independence, and strong connections with their peers. We can’t wait to hear about their adventures!

Our staff are always here to help! If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to your child’s classroom teacher or the front office staff. We value families as positive partners in our students learning and know that working together supports social and academic success.

We wish you all a safe and relaxing long weekend!

Warm regards

Kylee Weadley

Dates for your diary:

Assembly - Friday 7 March 2:20pm

NAPLAN Yr 3 and Yr 5 students - 12 -19 March

Yr 6 Camp - 10-12 March

Harmony Week - 17-21 March

Meet The Flinders Team

We want to introduce our Fabulous Flinders Park staff to you.

This week, we introduce our Year 6 teachers—Mr Beard and Ms Dente. They are excited to support and guide our Year 6 students through their final year at Flinders Park Primary School. This pair are a dynamic duo who are committed to providing our students with the academic and social skills they need in preparation for their journey into secondary education.

Did you know:

Mr Beard has been practicing Tai Quan Do for the past 30 years! He is also an experienced instructor in his spare time.

Ms Dente is a Cancer and a real water baby! She loves spending time on the water in her boat, fishing and relaxing on Rottnest Island.

Thank you both for the amazing work you do supporting our students, and we are grateful to have you on the Flinders team.

Faction Swimming Carnival

48 students went to the pool on Friday 21 February to participate in the annual Faction Swimming Carnival.

A full range of events was on offer and students took advantage of the opportunity to race against others in their preferred swimming events.

Three team games were also included in the program and gave the students the chance to have some light-hearted fun in the pool. For some, it was their first experience of the GOAT of swimming team games - Tunnelfish. It truly is a remarkable event to watch and/or participate in.

Results were particularly close with the top three factions separated by only 9 points with only one point the difference between first and second.

1^st Nanarup 225

2^nd Kalgan 224

3^rd Millbrook 216

4^th Yatana 168

From here, selected students will be asked to represent the school at the Interschool swimming carnival in week 9. More information on this will be distributed soon.

Many thanks to the parents who volunteered to take on roles and to those who came along to support the students.

Ms Menegola

Bonnie Is Our Storydog

Dogs make reading fun!

Ruth and Labrador Bonnie have joined Flinders Park Primary School this year as part of the Storydogs program.

Our year 2 students get one on one time with Bonnie to read books to her in a quiet space at school.

Ruth and Bonnie had to pass an accreditation by a certified dog trainer to be able to work as a storydog.

If you see Bonnie wearing her orange work vest she is officially at work supporting students, you can give them a quiet wave to say hello.

ACROD Parking Bay

Welcome back, Parents and Carers, to 2025,

Flinders Park PS has added a new ACROD Parking Bay to our school's main driveway parking area (see photo), marked with a blue and white ACROD symbol. This parking spot has been allocated to support the family of a new kindergarten student. Could we please ask parents and carers not to park in this spot? Your support will be greatly appreciated.

David Senn, Deputy Principal

Ticks On School Grounds

We would like to let you know that there are ticks on the grass between Block 4 and Block 5.

To reduce the risk of exposure to our students we have moved the eating area to our Assembly Hall for the next two days.

We will closely monitor the situation and take appropriate action. Please check your children for tick bites.

Thank you.

Dogs On School Property

On weekends and weekday afternoons, can we ask all parents who may be using our school oval to monitor for dogs on the school property? We have had dogs roaming onto the school property and pooing on the oval and early childhood areas. This poo is not getting picked up by the accompanying owners resulting in a mess that our gardener then must pick up for the safety of our students’ health.

Contributions And Charges 2025

The financial support of parents is vital to Flinders Park PS and contributes significantly to providing a wider range of educational opportunities than otherwise possible. We use contributed funds to purchase resources which enhance teaching, learning experiences and enhance the learning environment at our school.

Voluntary Contributions

Whilst termed voluntary, these parent contributions are a vital part of our school funding. Every voluntary contribution received from parents goes directly to the education of the students at Flinders Park Primary School. The voluntary contribution is set at $60 for each child to a maximum of $180 per family.

P&C Voluntary Contribution

The P&C requests a contribution of $15 per student to a maximum of $45 per family. The P&C generously supports Flinders Park PS by providing enriching activities for our community and generously providing funds for special projects, equipment and resources.

Charges

These items will be charged individually as the activity occurs, such as excursions and incursions. Excursions and incursions are an important part of each child’s education, and we encourage participation wherever possible. Interschool Sport, PEAC, Choir and Instrumental Music are only charges for those students participating in these activities.

There are some families who took advantage of paying for contributions via Albany Office Products Depot when ordering stationery, which is fantastic. Others have been paying via Direct Deposit into our bank account. We thank all those who have arranged these “earlybird” payments. We will be sending reminder letters out towards the end of Term 1 to remaining families who have contributions, PEAC or Instrumental Music charges on their accounts.

If you have any queries or need further information, please contact the school office on 9892 5200 or by email flinderspark.ps@education.wa.edu.au
Thank you for your ongoing financial support of Flinders Park PS, helping us to provide enriched learning opportunities for every student.

Instrumental Music 2025

We have a wonderful and talented group of students participating in the Instrumental Music (IMSS) program at Flinders again this year.

A charge of $30.00 is requested from IMSS students, which goes toward the purchase of school music supplies and equipment (e.g. music stands, class sets of books, ensemble music, instrument accessories) as well as select IMSS activities/excursions.

Some students will be hiring their instrument from the school, for which there is an additional charge of $110.00 with an accompanying agreement form. Students will not be able to bring the loaned instrument home until the charge is paid and the form is signed and returned.

If your child is participating in IMSS this year, please ensure you have completed and returned the IMSS Amenities Form and IMSS Instrument Loan Agreement form (if applicable); and paid the charges through direct deposit or via the Drop Box as soon as possible.

Thank you.

Absences. Did You Know?

Parents/Carers must inform the school why their child is absent from school for EVERY day they are away. You need to notify the school on every repeated day they are away. Notifying the school of the absence on the first day does not cover the other days (we cannot assume why your child is away).

How do I inform the school to cover the period my child is/was absent?

Inform the school before the event of the dates your child will be away.
Inform the school every day why your child is absent.
Inform the school on the day your child returns, stating the days they were away and why they were absent.

Thank you.

Mr Senn
Deputy Principal

Student Health Information And Medical Conditions

As part of our start of year processes we send home medical forms for students with existing health conditions (allergy, asthma, etc).

Please return the completed medical forms to the school office as soon as possible.

Please contact the school office if

- your child has an existing medical condition but you did not receive medical forms

- there has been a change in medical conditions

- the medical condition is not applicable anymore and does not need managing at school

Flinders Park Primary School uses the student health care information provided by parents to:

manage student health care needs
plan and respond to student health care emergencies
manage the approval, use, and storage of student medication
manage staff training and resources

It is very important that we have all medical conditions on record, particularly those that can be life-threatening such as asthma or an allergy with anaphylactic reactions. Depending on the medical condition your child has, we may ask for Health Forms or Action Plans to be completed by the parent/carer.

Administering Medication

If your child requires medication during the school day - whether on a short-term basis (ie. injury, illness) or long-term basis, please notify the school office.

We will provide you with a consent form which also collects information pertaining to the medication and dosage, and we will administer it to your child at the office.

If you have any questions, please contact the school office.

Thank you.

Introducing Georgia, School Health Nurse

Flinders Park Soccer Club

Dear All,

We are so excited for the upcoming soccer season for 2025!

Thank you to all those that have expressed their interest so far!

For those that are yet to, please do so ASAP - Contact secretary.fpscalbany@gmail.com with your child's name/ date of birth/ year group/ shirt size (size up by at 1 or 2 sizes).

We are also seeking interest of those who would like to assist in either a coaching role or team management role.

Without the support of these roles - we will be unable to field sides. So, whether you are a veteran or a total novice - so long as you have a willingness to give it a go, we would like to hear from you and will support you as best we can.

Training generally takes place on a Wednesday afternoon from 3.10pm - 4pm/4.30pm on Flinders Park Primary School oval.

Game day is on Saturday at North Road Soccer Grounds (game times will vary) and the season runs for Term 2 and Term 3.

Fees for the 2025 season (please ensure KidSport Vouchers are for the correct amount) will be as follows;

Under 7's - $90 (AJSA fee) + $30 Club Fee Total $120
Under 8's - Under 11's - $125 (AJSA fee) + $30 Club Fee Total $155
Under 12's - $145 (AJSA fee) + $30 Club Fee Total $175

KidSport Financial assistance (see link here) is available for eligible families and we encourage you to start the process as soon as possible.

Please select Albany Junior Soccer Association.

Once your voucher has been approved, please email your code to secretary.fpscalbany@gmail.com.

We will NOT be able to process your child's registration without it.

We hope to have registrations open shortly.

We will always do our best to accommodate all, however we cannot guarantee you a place for the 2025 season.

Please spread the word and as always, any questions or concerns, please let us know.

Acknowledgement Of Country

At Flinders Park Primary School we respectfully acknowledge the Noongar people as the traditional Custodians of the land we live, learn and play on.

We embrace the Noongar community and their continuing connection to Country, water and sky and pay our respects to Elders past and present. As a school we are committed to fostering respectful relationships with the First Nations Peoples and welcome their guidance and support.