We have now over the midway point in this final term as we head quickly towards the end of the year.  We hope that you all engage with us as we have a couple of wonderful community activities to take place between now and the year’s end including our End of Year Celebration, Step Up Day and Year 6 Graduation.  The year will be over before we know it.

Pick up and drop off

Can I please congratulate everyone for the way they are dropping off their children in the mornings?  It is very pleasing to see that people have taken the advice and are trying to keep our students safe.  Can I please advise that you only let students out of your car when you are in the drop-off zone and do it quickly as getting out of your car and taking a couple of minutes to collect bags and so on causes traffic to back up.  I would also ask that you let children out of your car on the curb side.  This prevents students from being vulnerable to oncoming traffic.  We still need to do a lot of work in the afternoon period as people are forcing others to drive on the wrong side of the road by parking their cars on the side of the main road whilst they wait for their children.  This is not only dangerous, but illegal and can incur a fine.

End of Year Celebration

Our End of Year Celebration and Awards night is on Thursday 4th December.  We will have food trucks in the car park and some cultural performances from local community groups.  Awards will be handed out to students and the new student leaders will be announced.  We want to see everyone there with their families to help us farewell the 2025 school year.  Please bring a picnic rug and some seating and take up a space on the oval from 4pm.

End of Year Raffle

Our Raffle will also be drawn on this night with the major prize being a Nintendo Switch donated by Big Childcare.  If you are able to contribute to our growing list of prizes and would like to promote your business, please let us know how you can help.

Step Up Day

Step Up Day is coming up soon.  On this day we students will be in their new classes with their new teachers for 2026. We are currently in the process of putting these grades together and employing our final group of teachers.

Have a great weekend.

Darryl Spiteri

Principal

Congratulations to 1G who achieved the best attendance for the week ending 14th November, 2025.

PRIMARY SCHOOL ATTENDANCE

Going to school every day is the single most important part of your child’s education. Students learn new things at school every day – missing school puts them behind.

If your child is sick or absent, you are required to notify school as soon as possible on the day of absence using one of the following methods:

1. Online: log the absence directly using Compass.
2. Telephone: the school office and let the staff know your child’s name, class, date of absences and reason.

Notifying the school of your child’s absence either prior to, or on the day that they will be away, helps ensure the safety and wellbeing of children and will fulfil your legal responsibility.

Why do I need to notify the school if my child is absent?

Schools need to know when and why a child is absent and you need to know if your child isn’t at school.

If your child is absent on a particular day and you have not contacted the school to explain why, the absence will be marked as unexplained.

This system also promotes daily school attendance. Going to school every day is the single most important part of your child’s education, they learn new things every day – missing school puts them behind.

What is your responsibility?

You are legally required to ensure your child attends school every day or you must provide an explanation for their absence. You should let the school know in advance of any upcoming absences or let them know in the morning if your child won’t be at school. Avoid making routine medical and dental appointments during the school day or planning family holidays during the term.

Recognising great attendance and punctuality.

Our attendance target is 96%.  Each week, we reward the class with the highest attendance (which includes getting to school on time!), with our school mascot, Ripwell in their classroom for the week.

The Benefits of Family Rituals

Whether we are aware of them or not, we all have individual and group rituals.  Things like a cup of coffee first thing in the morning with our work colleagues, walking the dog when we get home, cake to celebrate birthdays, a movie with family on Sunday nights, a hot bath after sport, a weekly phone catch up with a loved one, holidays at the beach………………. these are all example of rituals we develop and perpetuate.  Rituals can be daily, weekly, monthly or attached to special occasions.

There is plentiful evidence that family rituals can be very beneficial at all life stages, but particularly during childhood and adolescence.  Benefits include;

• Promoting a sense of belonging and connectedness – relationships are very important to positive mental health and life satisfaction.
• Supporting the development of social skills and attitudes – family rituals can support not only positive family relationships but can also assist young people to develop the skills and attitudes necessary to build healthy relationships in other areas of their lives.
• Identity – rituals help us to define our values and sense of self which in turn supports the development of positive self-esteem and drives goal setting behaviours.
• Predictability – consistency can enhance our sense of safety and help in the regulation of our moods.
• Resilience – family rituals can provide a space for families to connect and engage via shared activities thus helping family units to be strong and supportive. Support networks are predictive of mental health outcomes during times of trauma, grief and other life stressors. The better the support networks, the greater the likelihood of recovery and positive mental health outcomes.

Links for further reading;

The Power of Family Rituals: Why Shared Moments Matter for Children’s Mental Health – Mindright Mindright

Why are family traditions & rituals important? | Raising Children

X FACTORY SCHOOL PERFORMANCE 

Our very first school production was a spectacular celebration of talent, teamwork, and creativity. Our students brought the stage to life with their incredible performances, captivating the audience with their energy and passion. From the set designs to the wonderful vocals and heartfelt acting, every detail reflected the hard work and dedication of our cast, crew, and staff.

A huge thank-you goes out to everyone who contributed—students, teachers, parents, and volunteers—for making this production such a memorable success. The X Factory truly showcased the spirit of our school community and the amazing things we can achieve together!

Our Learning in Year 1

Grade 1 – Respecting Our School Environment

In Wellbeing this term, Grade 1 students have been learning all about respect, one of our important school values. We explored different ways we can show respect for our school environment — by keeping our toilets clean, our classrooms tidy, and most importantly, by taking care of our school grounds.

We noticed that lots of rubbish had been dropped around the school, so we made it our mission to clean it up! Each day during the week, Grade 1 students went out to collect rubbish and were amazed by how much we found — over six full bags! This does not even include the rubbish that our two school maintenance men also collected through the week. 

To share our learning, our class captains proudly spoke at the school assembly about the fantastic work we did and how we helped care for our grounds. Mr. Spiteri was very impressed, and we’re hoping that our efforts inspire everyone to show more respect for our school environment.

   Our Learning in Year 2

Literacy
Students have spent the first part of Term 4 revisiting narratives. They have planned, drafted and edited their texts before selecting their favourites to publish. Students used picture prompts to guide their writing and help develop their planning skills. 

Numeracy

In Numeracy, students have finished their measurement unit after exploring capacity, mass and time. We had lots of fun doing hands-on activities and exploring formal and informal units! 

We are now beginning our number unit which will revisit place value and the operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

Inquiry:

Students have been learning all about the systems that make up our bodies! They have learnt about the skeletal, muscular, respiratory and circulatory system. We have added these on models of our own bodies and learnt about how they all work together to help us stay healthy.

Congratulations to the following students who are celebrating a birthday in November!

We hope you had a lovely day!

Hashaam 2B

Ahmad 56E

Marcus PD

Amaya 1E

Pragnya 1C

Akaldeep 56C

Ranveer PE

Julian PF

Amelia 34B

Kai PB

Aadit 2C

Amber 2E

Jeremiah 34D

Mabior 34A

Ayaan 34B

Adriana 56E

Sofiya PA

Wania 1E

Atarah 1F

Iyan 2D

Fateh PF

Radhav 34C

Bhashvika Reddy 56B

Lilyana 56F

Tyler 2E

Killarney 34H

Aishleen 34E

Ebubechukwu  34D

Simarjot PE

Gurman 1E

Annamaria PG

Leawi 34B

Johnie 56C

Mary 56D

Alojz 1B

Mary 34D

*Please note that birthdays are only published up until the date of publication.  

If anyone would like to register their interest, via basketball.flames@outlook.com would be greatly appreciated.

Come along and try Karate! Increase your confidence, learn new physical skills and have FUN in a safe and nurturing environment.

THORNHILL PARK PRIMARY SCHOOL GYM – WEDNESDAYS 4PM (AGES 4+)

To register for 2 FREE SESSIONS, please call 0407320333 or visit our website www.artofdefence.com.au

Congratulations to the following students who received awards during our assemblies!

Keep up the great work!

Students of the Week – Ending 7th November

Students of the Week – Ending 14th November

Important Dates – Term 4

• Wednesday 3rd December – Funfields Excursion – Year 6 students only
• Thursday 4th December – End of Year Celebration & Awards (4pm – 6:30pm)
• Tuesday 9th December – Whole School Transition Day
• Wednesday 10th December – Year 2 Westgate Indoor Sports Centre Excursion
• Wednesday 10th December – Year 6 Graduation (4pm – 6pm)
• Friday 12th December – Pyjama Day Fundraiser
• Friday 19th December – Term 4 ends @ 12.30pm