W.A. NAPLAN TOP 20 SCHOOLS – 2024

Centre School for Excellence 2023-2026

Dear Parents and Carers,

Thanks

To our wonderful P&C Team who perform magical events for us all to enjoy, year in and year out. I congratulate Leanna Roos (President) and Yvette Dunn-Moses (Vice-President) along with their Executive for taking on Leadership positions for 2025 and beyond.

The 2024 year was marvellous with many events carried out by the P&C – they have helped build a culture of cooperation and support in our community. Thank you so much.

A big thanks to outgoing Michelle Morley and Chelsea Walker for their part in shaping the P&C team and support for the children in this school. Thank you, Michelle and Chelsea.

School Changes

I begin by saying that I have been honoured to have been able to undertake the role of Principal at Caladenia Primary School, a school of great students, great staff, great parents, working together in building greater communities.

I am returning to retirement (again) at the end of the April school holidays. This will require some staffing changes that I have discussed and confirmed with our Assistant Director of Education at the regional office. Our intent is to maintain stability of leadership without too much interruption to the great routines and relationships established at our school.

I am pleased to announce the following changes:

·         Mrs Paula Asplin will move in to the role of Principal, at this point in time, until the end of Term 2. Mrs Asplin will work alongside me for Weeks 8 to 10 of Term 1, enabling a thorough handover of responsibilities

·         Mrs Victoria Avery will move in to the role of Deputy Principal in Week 8 of Term 1 until the end of Term 2.  Mrs Sonia Joseph will cover Mrs Avery’s Year 5 class until we can appoint Ms Caitlin Taylor, hopefully for the start of Week 10, Term 1. Ms Taylor completed her final student teacher placement with Mrs Avery (Year 5) in Term 4 last year and, therefore, is very familiar with the Caladenia approach to teaching, and our classroom routines and expectations.

·         Mrs Brylie Clements will be going on Maternity leave in Term 2 commencing around Week 3. Mrs Angela O’Malley will move in to the role of Deputy Principal for the remainder of Term 2. Miss Kira Sunkar will take on the role of K3A and K3B teacher, replacing Mrs O’Malley. Miss Sunkar will be replaced by Ms Darcy Pickett, a teacher with 3 years of experience in early childhood education in the North West of WA. We have been lucky to have Ms Pickett join us as a relief teacher since the start of 2025. We know she will move in to Miss Sunkar’s current roles with ease.

Traffic Flow and Parking

It is extremely unfortunate that I need to repeat this message again to parents.

Unfortunately, on numerous occasions over the past 2 weeks, I have witnessed, in person and had reports of dangerous driving by some of our parents.  Cutting the corner and/or on the wrong side of the road is dangerous at the best of times, but when children are crossing over the intersection of Bushy Gardens, it becomes sheer luck that someone is not killed.

I am at a loss as what to do other than request City of Gosnells Ranger and WAPOL Traffic Police assistance if this parental behaviour continues. Staff at Caladenia are here to educate your children in a safe and protective environment. We are not here to educate parents on road safety, common courtesy, pro-social behaviour and polite respect for others.

Please do not carry out dangerous driving around the school or park where and how you should not – please do not be the person who, for the sake of a few minutes of patience, creates an accident outside our wonderful school.

It is only for a short twenty minutes in the mornings and afternoons that we need to be super careful, polite and patient.

Our school happenings

·         NAPLAN is occurring from Wednesday 12th March to Monday 24th March in several classrooms throughout the school. If you are visiting the school during teaching times, please be aware of the need for silence for these children in Years 3 and 5.

·         Harmony Week activities and Assemblies Week 8 (Tuesday – Friday)

·         Summer Carnival Day (Year 5 & 6 only) has been scheduled by the South-Central School Sports Assoc. for Friday 4th April and a back-up day for Wednesday 9th April if needed due to weather conditions. More information will come out soon.

·         Year 2 Kalamunda Excursions – Monday 7th, Tuesday 8th and Wednesday 9th April (2 classes a day)

·         Our ANZAC Day Ceremonies/Assemblies will be held on Thursday 10th April.

A very busy end to Term One!

This is a 10-week term and ends on Friday 11th April for students and Staff.

Term 2 is also an 10-week term – starting on 28th April and ending on 4th July.

THOUGHT: CHANGE

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”         Barack Obama

Have a great weekend.

Paul Bottcher

Principal

School News

School App

Our school App is called School Stream and you can download
it for free. It is an essential resource for parents to have as we use the app for all communication. It is also advised to keep your notifications setting turned on as, at times, it may be the only way the school can communicate.

Scan the barcode below or Download the School Stream app today.

Student Achievement

At Caladenia, we love showcasing our students’ sporting achievements and events, as well as any other interests that they would like to share with our Caladenia Community.
If you have something your child would like to share, please email along with photos to the email address below:
Justine.arnold@education.wa.edu.au

What’s happening in our Harmony Week Celebrations!This year we are celebrating Harmony Day with a week of events! Here is a list of the events we have planned to celebrate Harmony Week.

Tuesday 25th March – Wear Orange Day
Orange is the official colour chosen to represent Harmony Week. Orange signifies social communication and meaningful conversations. It also relates to the freedom of ideas and encouragement of mutual respect.
Students and Staff are invited to wear something orange to celebrate Harmony Week.
Wednesday 26th March – ‘Everyone Belongs’
Family Event 3pm to 6pm
Take the night off cooking –bring a picnic rug and come and spend some time with other families from the school community. There are food trucks coming and music to help celebrate our Harmony Week.
Thursday 27th March Year Level Collage Display
All students will create an art piece to prepare a collaborative whole school art display representing Harmony Week ~ Everyone Belongs. Each Year Level will participate in the display and it will be on pin-up boards, which will be placed outside the Undercover Area to celebrate Harmony Week!

Thursday 27th March – K2A & K3A Traditional Dress 
As the children in K2A and K3A don’t attend school on Fridays – we are inviting our Kindy students to dress in their Traditional Dress on this day.
Friday 28th March – Harmony Day Assembly  
Students and staff are invited to dress in their cultural dress to attend the Harmony Day Assembly. If your country doesn’t have a cultural dress, students are encouraged to wear their country colours, eg, Australia, green and gold.
The Harmony Day Assembly will commence at 8:40am in the Undercover Area.
It is for all classes from PP to Yr 6.
Parents are welcome to attend.

Student Lunches

We are currently experiencing many students who are attending school with no, to little lunch supplied.
School lunch is important for our students as it provides energy throughout the school day, which can impact their focus and assists them in participating actively in classroom activities.

A few ideas to help parents, students and carers are below:
• Ensure the student has enough food for a recess break and lunch, sometimes packing a little extra fruit or vegetables can take away those cravings and perhaps even an extra sandwich or two will fill their little tummies.
• If the student has food that requires a spoon or fork, parents are asked to supply an environmentally safe utensil as the school does not have any student cutlery.
• Add a variety of colours to their lunchboxes for a little fun and excitement.
• Cut sandwiches and fruit into shapes
• When placing canteen orders, please double check you have received your confirmation email and the class room name blocks are correct as many orders are not going through correctly and being misplaced.

Class News

Pre Primary Room 6 – Mrs Haug

This term in Pre-primary we are learning about living things. As part of this topic, we are growing bean plants in class and taking care of them each day. We are learning what plants need to grow, and identifying different parts of the plant. We are also creating a beautiful picture of a flower and attempting to label it correctly.

Year 2 Room 28 – Miss Dos Santos

For Science in Room 28, we are learning how to conduct experiments. We have learned how to make a hypothesis and the types of variables we must consider when doing an experiment. Over the past couple of weeks we have been testing the best amount of sunlight needed to grow peas. Some plants have been given direct sunlight and some indirect sunlight. Our plants are thriving!

Community News

W.A. NAPLAN TOP 20 SCHOOLS – 2024

Centre School for Excellence 2023-2026

Dear Parents and Carers,

Thanks
Thank you to all families for helping us have a very smooth start to the year. Children and staff have settled rapidly into good routines and are forming strong and lasting relationships. We are grateful to all new staff for the wonderful way they have committed to our great school and the feedback from them is that they enjoy the school’s culture and support they are given by our school community.
Thank you for your understanding in the recent summer weather we have experienced – these uncomfortable conditions place an enormous stress load staff and students alike We keep the students safe and hydrated – any take this opportunity to always reinforce our “no hat – no play” policy.
The Welcome Back to School event on Friday of Week 2 was successful with many parents meeting new families and staff members. These celebrations help us to bond as early as possible with families so that everyone feels that they are part of the larger family of Caladenia. Thanks to the P & C, the Executive Team and Teachers for their time to make this event happen.

School Events
P&C AGM was on Monday 17 February in the Staff Room, and we have welcomed new members and new Executive members. The work that our P&C do to make Caladenia a better place is deeply appreciated. Please join and support them.
In Weeks 2 and 3 we held Meet the Teacher events in the Undercover Area and PP/K areas for all Year groups.
This term, we are planning for the
• Centre for Excellence program Intern Schools at Caladenia on Wednesday 5th March.
• P & C Sausage Sizzle stall at Caladenia Polling Place on Saturday 8th March
• P & C General Meeting on Monday 10th March at 7:00pm
• NAPLAN – Wednesday 12 March to Monday 24th March for Years 3 and 5 only
• Harmony Week activities and Assemblies Week 8 (Tuesday – Friday)
• Summer Carnival Day (Year 5 & 6 only) has been scheduled by the South-Central School Sports Assoc. for Friday 4th April and a back-up day for Wednesday 9th April if needed due to weather conditions. More information will come out soon.
• Year 2 Kalamunda Excursions – Monday 7th, Tuesday 8th and Wednesday 9th April (2 classes a day)
• Our ANZAC Day Ceremony/Assembly will be held on Thursday 10th April.
A very busy Term for all!

Repeat – Traffic Flow and Parking
The City of Gosnells request that all school families observe traffic rules around the school – the Ranger will be visiting our school in the mornings and afternoons during the term to observe traffic flow and rules of parking. The Ranger requests

Do not park in a Kiss and Drive Bay or NO STOPPING, NO PARKING areas
Do not double park
Do not drive on the wrong side of the road for ANY distance
Do onto park on the nature strips/lawns around the school
Do not park against the flow of traffic
Do not stop or park in bus bays
Always be aware of children on roads and footpaths, grassed areas
Walk or cycle/ride to school
Always stop on the school side of the road so your child is not crossing the road
Use the crosswalk at all times
Use parent parking on school site properly – be quick so others can also access the parking
Do not block driveways
Do not park on footpaths
Don’t get frustrated – it doesn’t help, and children will be the losers if you “lose it”
Observe the 40km/hour speed zone – it is there to protect your children
A fine will be imposed of $100 for not observing the above and $500 for parking in a Disabled Parking Bay
Thank you in anticipation.

Reminder
• This is a 10-week term and ends on Friday 11th April for students and staff.
• Term 2 is also a 10-week term – starting Monday 28th April and ending Friday 4th July.

THOUGHT: We want to develop our students to become Lifelong Learners.
“Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only at death. “– Albert Einstein.

Paul Bottcher
Principal

School News

Our school App is called School Stream and you can download it for free. It is an essential resource for parents to have as we use the app for all communication. It is also advised to keep your notifications setting turned on as, at times, it may be the only way the school can communicate.

Scan the barcode below or Download the School Stream app today.

Canteen Orders – 20 March 2025

Please be advised that Canteen Orders for Thursday 20th March are pre-order only and will close on Friday the 14th of March.
No orders can be made on the day of the Thursday 20th of March.
There will be some additional items on the menu, such as Sushi!

Harmony Week Overview 2025

This year we are celebrating Harmony Day with a week of events! Here is a list of the events we have planned to celebrate Harmony Week.

Tuesday
25th March – Wear Orange Day
Orange is the official colour chosen to represent Harmony Week. Orange signifies social communication and meaningful conversations. It also relates to the freedom of ideas and encouragement of mutual respect.
Students and Staff are invited to wear something orange to celebrate Harmony Week.
Wednesday 26th March – ‘Everyone Belongs’
Family Event 3pm to 6pm
Take the night off cooking –bring a picnic rug and come and spend some time with other families from the school community. There are food trucks coming and music to help celebrate our Harmony Week.
Thursday 27th March Year Level Collage Display
All students will create an art piece to prepare a collaborative whole school art display representing Harmony Week ~ Everyone Belongs. Each Year Level will participate in the display and it will be on pin-up boards, which will be placed outside the Undercover Area to celebrate Harmony Week!

Thursday 27th March – K2A & K3A Traditional Dress 
As the children in K2A and K3A don’t attend school on Fridays – we are inviting our Kindy students to dress in their Traditional Dress on this day.
Friday 28th March – Harmony Day Assembly  
Students and staff are invited to dress in their cultural dress to attend the Harmony Day Assembly.
The Harmony Day Assembly will commence at 8:40am in the Undercover Area.
It is for all classes from PP to Yr 6.
Parents are welcome to attend.

Class News 

Year 1 Room 32 – Mrs Heinzman

A creative start to the year
We have had so much fun reading and reciting the Jill Eggleton poem, A Fu Fu Bird. We practised reading with expression (don’t read like a robot!) and placing emphasis in the right places. We drew our own version of the Fu Fu Bird and enjoyed comparing our drawing to that of the author’s. In groups, we made up our own ‘squawk’ which gave us all a good laugh! But best of all … we made our own Fu Fu Bird with paper plates, feathers and googly eyes. We love having our colourful Fu Fu Birds decorating our classroom door!
We continued our creative journey in Maths by making a Ten Frame Monster. The Ten Frames are helping us to develop our number sense. We coloured our monster’s top set of teeth in one colour, and the bottom set in another colour. Then we added those together to get the total number of teeth. Our goofy monsters are hanging up in our classroom – come and check them out!

Year 6 Room 42 – Mr Johnson and Mr Bailey

In Year 6, our students have been exploring how changes in altitude and sub-sea-level environments affect the human body. Through thorough research and investigation, they’ve uncovered remarkable insights, culminating in the creation of an infographic to showcase their understanding. A key focus for our Caladenia Year 6 cohort is high school readiness, emphasizing the development of critical thinking and research skills to navigate more complex information. Their impressive work will soon be displayed in our Room 42 classrooms—you’re welcome to visit and admire their outstanding creations.

School Board, P&C and Community News

Welcome our new Caladenia P&C Committee for 2025

President : Leanna Roos
Vice President: Yvette Dunn-Moses
Secretary: Tania Martellotta
Treasurer: Stacey Walker
Executive Members: Natasha Lammas, Sophia Koa, Prateek Godika, Kelli Ritchie, Paula Asplin
Book Club Organiser: Kylie Chapman

President – Leanna Roos

My name is Leanna Roos and I am the new President of the P&C. My husband Axel is a FIFO Dad and we have two daughters, Charlotte who is in year 3 and Tessa who is in year one. I’ve just finished a course and am now a qualified Education Assistant. I’m excited for the year ahead and what the committee can do for the school community. Please reach out to me if you have any questions or suggestions.

Vice President – Yvette Dunn-Moses

Yvette Dunn-Moses is a South African living in Perth since 2019. Working part time as a Youth Worker for City of Gosnells. She is a visual artist, holds a Master degree in Visual Arts and claims her best creation yet is her son Guerra. Yvette is the Vice-President of the P&C.Secretary – Tania Martellotta

I’m Tania and I’m excited to be the new P&C Secretary. I have three children at Caladenia in Years 1, 4 and 6. I have been actively involved with the P&C for several years, and I also work part-time in banking. Outside of work and volunteering, I enjoy a good coffee, reading and spending quality time with my family.

Treasurer – Stacey Walker

Hi, I’m Stacey and I’m the Treasurer for 2025. I have two kids, a year 6 and a year 8. My daughter is in her last year at Caladenia and my son graduated from Caladenia in 2023.
This will be my fourth year as treasurer for Caladenia, though I have been involved in P and Cs for 10 years and have held various positions during that time.
As the treasurer I take care of the accounts of the committee including end of year financial statements, fundraising reports and banking. My role involves liaising with various institutions including WACSSO, Associations online, ATO and our bank to ensure all deadlines are met.

Book Club Organiser – Kylie Chapman

Hi! I’m Kylie and this is my third year in the role of Book Club Co-Ordinator. It will also be my last! After 9 years at Caladenia my youngest daughter will graduate at the end of the year. I will be looking for someone to learn the ropes at the end of the year and take over in 2026- please let the office know if you would like more details.
I hope that my helping with Book Club has helped develop a love of books and reading in our little people. Together we have also raised funds for the library staff to spend on books for our children. Thank you for your support!

Executive Member – Sophia Koa

I’m Sophia and I’m a newly appointed Executive Member of the P&C. I’m a working mum with a Year 4 and a Year 2 currently in Caladenia. Originally from Malaysia, I have lived in Canning Vale for more than 10 years. Please feel free to approach me with any queries if you see me around the school (I’ll be wearing a P&C badge)!

Please see the link below for further information on our P&C and come down and support the P&C on Election Day.

Term 1 meeting flyer

Please click the link below to visit the Safety Around Schools brochure.

safety_around_schools_brochure_V1