We are fast approaching the end of Term 1 and things are still pretty busy.  This week will end with Harmony Day celebrations and a picnic and assembly outside.

Harmony Day Afternoon and Picnic

We will be doing our Harmony Day celebrations on Friday 20th March.  We are inviting all families to attend our school on Friday afternoon from 2pm to share a picnic with their children on the soccer pitch and to participate in an outdoor assembly.  Students are encouraged to wear either cultural clothing from their Nationality or the colour orange, which is the colour associated with harmony, respect and tolerance.  Harmony Day began in 1999 and coincides with the United Nation’s International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.  We hope to see you all there.

What to do when your children have issues with other children

We are often given information about students having conflicts with each other at school and we do our best to sort these situations out quickly if we know about them.  We understand that frustrations can sometimes reach a peak when children are returning home retelling a situation from their perspective and they are often upset as the situation is still new.  Having done this for a long time, I can safely say that perspective is an interesting thing and two sides of the story can often be so different that you often can’t find the actual truth quickly.  The other thing that we always come across is that people think that all issues at school are bullying issues.  Bullying is defined as ongoing and targeted behaviour towards someone, whether physical or verbal.  We have very few bullying issues at our school and although bullying exists at times, we find that once we are informed of it occurring we are able to find a resolution and prevent it from continuing.

If something happens at school please follow these steps;

• • • ask your child to recount their side of the story and perhaps ask them if they are leaving out any parts that might get them into trouble also
    • speak with your child’s teacher about the situation and try to gain a resolution. Often, teachers will get the students together or refer the situation onto a member of the leadership team to support.
    • if you don’t feel the situation has been resolved, please ask to speak with either, Mrs Payton, Mrs Stott, Mrs Pittman, Mr Bartlett or myself and let us know what has already been done.  Please don’t skip the previous steps as most things can be sorted out at the classroom level.
    • under no circumstances should you approach students or confront them on behalf of your children.  Doing this can have you excluded from our school grounds or invoke police involvement.  We don’t want to have to prevent people from being involved in our community or school events and activities.

NAPLAN

Our students in Year 3 and Year 5 have just completed the NAPLAN activities for 2026.  We had a bit of a hiccup during the writing task as a Nationwide glitch meant that we had to pause our writing and return to it on the next day.  NAPLAN is a National Assessment used to assess students against State and Federal benchmarks and to ascertain how well students might be tracking compared to their peers.  It is however only a snapshot of student ability and a very small part of our assessment processes and procedures at school.  We commend the students on their concentration and effort during the Reading, Writing, Language Conventions, Spelling and Numeracy assessments.  Results will be available later in the year.  Our NAPLAN trends have shown that student growth has been exceptional at our school.  This means that the work that teachers are doing with your children has been highly effective, regardless of where their starting point is on entry to our school.

I hope you have a great week.

Darryl Spiteri

Principal

Harmony Week is the celebration that recognises our diversity and brings together Australians from all different backgrounds. It’s about inclusiveness, respect, and a sense of belonging for everyone. We are encouraging students and staff to wear orange or your traditional costume to show support.

At Thornhill Park PS, we will be celebrating this special week on Friday 20^th March.

CSEF is provided by the Victorian Government to assist eligible families to cover the costs of school trips, camps and sporting activities.

If you hold a valid means-tested concession card or are a temporary foster parent, you may be eligible for CSEF. A special consideration category also exists for asylum seeker and refugee families. The allowance is paid to the school to use towards expenses relating to camps, excursions or sporting activities for the benefit of your child.

Payment amounts for eligible families this year have increased to $400 for primary and secondary school students. This is up from $154 and $256 respectively.

HOW TO APPLY: Contact the school office to obtain a CSEF application form or download from www.education.vic.gov.au/csef.  If you applied for the CSEF at your child’s school in 2025 you do not need to complete an application form in 2025 unless there has been a change in your family circumstances.  Applications close on 22/06/26.

Congratulations to 34C who achieved the best attendance for the week ending 6th March, 2026.

Congratulations to Prep G who achieved the best attendance for the week ending 13th March, 2026.

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.

Our Learning in Years 1 & 2

Our Learning in Grade 2

This term we are starting our Literacy unit with a Novel Study! We are learning how to analyse a fantasy text, looking at plot, characters and settings in fiction stories. Our novel this term is Victor’s Quest. We are all excited to learn how Victor will be triumphant in his quest to find a bride, and see what magical encounters he has along the way! The importance of reading every night is crucial for the development of your child’s confidence and fluency in reading. Please make sure they are reading on a nightly basis and filling out their diaries each day. 

In Numeracy, we have started our term with place value to build on our knowledge of digits and numbers. We are ordering, representing, reading and writing numbers up to 1000. Students are using concrete materials to help build representations and show numbers in different ways. Students also learnt about addition strategies and how to apply them to solve problems. Later on in the term, students will be learning about location. We will look into prepositional words and how to effectively use them to give directions and locate objects.

Our Inquiry topic this term is ‘Where in the world is…?’ The students have been learning about the world’s five oceans, seven continents and the features of earth, such as mountains, rivers and land masses. Students have enthusiastically researched the locations of our planet using Google Earth and used other tools such as a globe and the world map to name and label oceans and continents. They have discovered that earth has two hemispheres separated by an equator.

In Wellbeing, we have been learning about school expectations in our ready to learn program. We have revised school rules, and established class non-negotiables. We are exploring bullying and cyberbullying this term. We are exploring what bullying means, what it looks like, sounds like, feels like, and what to do if you are being bullied. We are also exploring cyber safety, and what to do if you feel unsafe or bullied when online. This is important as we get older and begin playing games online, and using chat-rooms. Cyber safety is important as they explore the internet at home and at school. 

In Term One, students are still required to wear a wide brimmed hat each play time, and stay hydrated by bringing a water bottle they can refill throughout the day. Please remember to update Compass if your child is going to be away. If there are any concerns or questions please contact your child’s teacher through Class Dojo. 

Thank you, we are looking forward to a great year together!

Grade 2 Team

Student Wellbeing at Thornhill Park Primary School

Thornhill Park Primary School ensures a strong commitment to Student Wellbeing that is founded on a positive school culture. Children feel valued, safe and secure in the school surroundings. Children are provided with meaningful opportunities to contribute to the school, they are encouraged to have a voice and supported to meet their personal and educational potential.

As a school we are committed to providing a consistent whole school approach to student wellbeing. We foster a culture where personal responsibility, independence, resilience and self-regulation are developed.

At TPPS we are taught our school values of Respect, Integrity, Persistence and Wellbeing and promote an understanding of the importance taking responsibility for our actions. As a whole school community, we model appropriate behaviours and focus on a positive mind set. We plan for behaviours and believe in collective responsibility for every child in the school. We explicitly teach children to be socially and emotionally competent. We strive to deliver stimulating classroom and specialist programs that ensure our students are fully engaged. We are focused on identifying talents, accepting differences to effectively meet the children’s diverse learning needs.

Our wellbeing team support our students at their point of need. We ensure we use a broad range of strategies and supports to enable our students to achieve the best possible outcomes.  The team is made up of wellbeing leading teachers, a student welfare officer, a psychologist and Student & Community Engagement.  The team works with students and families in a variety of ways based on their individual needs.  We also work closely with specialists and allied health professionals to complement student support.

A Message from First Aid

If your child requires medication to be administered at school, please come to the office to drop off the medication and complete appropriate forms.

This is to ensure your child is given the correct medication at the correct times.

Medication is NOT to be sent to school with students. This includes pain relief such as Panadol and Nurofen.

If your child has recently been diagnosed with Anaphylaxis, Allergies, Asthma or other medical conditions and you have not provided Action Plans and/or medication please come to the office and provide them to the School First Aid Officer.

Please email the office Thornhill.park.ps@education.vic.gov.au if your child no longer has a medical condition or requires medication at school.

For any questions you may have regarding your child’s medical needs at school please all the office and speak with Andrea School First Aid Officer.

Children that are fully supported with their medical needs feel good at school and will be at their best for learning.

Thank you 😊

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

Keep up the great work!

Students of the Week – Ending 6th March

Students of the Week – Ending 13th March

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

We hope you had a lovely day!

Melusha Diyoni 34I

Aarav 2F

Azalea 1D

Arlo 1F

Kuvi 56E

Genesis 56C

Zelda 1A

Braylen 56F

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

KIDS KARATE EVERY WEDNESDAY AT 4PM HERE AT THORNHILL PARK PRIMARY SCHOOL!

-Increase your confidence & self esteem

-Learn control, respect & discipline

-Improve physical & mental health

-A safe space to build lifelong friendships 

-Learn Self Defence techniques and skills 

2 FREE SESSIONS PLUS A FREE UNIFORM ON JOINING! (SAVING YOU $115) 

To register for your free sessions, please call OR text 0407-320-333 

http://www.artofdefence.com.au

Important Dates – Term 1

• 2026 NAPLAN Years 3 & 5 – NAPLAN schedule from 11^th March to 23^rd March
• Friday 20th March – Harmony Day
• Friday 27th March – National Young Leaders Day Year 5/6 – School Captain and House Captains
• Wednesday 1^st April – Colour Run – incorporating House Spirit Day
• Thursday, 2 April – Last day of Term 1

Term 2

• Monday 20th April – Curriculum Day (Student free day)
• Term 2 starts on Tuesday 21st of April