We have made it to the Melbourne Cup weekend, which is famously as sign that we are close to the finish line in terms of the school year.  There is still so much to do between now and the end of the year and we encourage you to enjoy the coming weeks as we head for the holidays.

Parking and U-Turns

In light of the recent tragedy that has taken place at Auburn South Primary, I would like to remind all parents of student safety on and around our school grounds.  Please refrain from using our staff car park at all times, regardless of whether you have babies, young children or what you feel is a reasonable excuse for being in the car park.  Parents and students who are walking through our car park deserve to feel safe and people parking in there, no matter the reason does not allow this to take place.  It is also extremely dangerous to perform U-Turns out the front of the school.  Please take the extra 30 seconds to drive around the block and exit safely.  The safety of our community relies on everyone’s cooperation.

Hats

A reminder that students need to wear hats in term 1 and 4.  Hats are available at the office.

Melbourne Cup Weekend

There will be no school this coming Monday 4th and Tuesday 5th November.  Our teachers will have a Professional Practice day on Monday and Melbourne Cup is obviously on Tuesday.  We hope you have a fabulous weekend.

Turtle

You may have noticed a turtle sculpture in the playground near our Yellow building.  This was made by an artist named Shlomit Moria who specialises in chainsaw created wooden sculptures.  This turtle represents Cooper house (green) and is a Long Necked Turtle.  Keep an eye out for further additions around the school.

Diwali

I wish those who celebrate it a Happy Diwali.  Diwali is a Hindu festival of light celebrated by many in our community.

Have a wonderful long weekend

Darryl Spiteri

Principal

Congratulations to 34C who achieved the highest attendance for the week ending 25th October.

Congratulations to 56B who achieved the highest attendance for the week ending  1st November.

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.

Yard Duty and Supervision

Before and after school Thornhill Park Primary School’s grounds are supervised by school staff from 8.40am until 3.15pm. Outside of these hours, school staff will not be available to supervise students.

Families are encouraged to contact Big Childcare on 1300 273 162 or refer to Big Childcare for more information about the before and after school care facilities available to our school community.

Hayfever

With the pollen count being moderate to high most days in our area a lot of our students have been suffering from itchy, sore eyes. If your child has been complaining of sore, itchy eyes and it is going to be a high pollen count day it may be advisable to give them some antihistamine before they come to school.  This helps by minimising disruptions and keeping our students focused on learning.

School Uniform Sale – Dobsons

**Prepare for the Upcoming Dobsons Annual Buy Early & Save Sale!**

We are delighted to announce our highly anticipated Dobsons Annual Buy Early & Save Sale, offering substantial savings on selected uniform items from September 1st to November 3rd, 2024.

Take advantage of this opportunity to avoid the back-to-school rush and benefit from discounts on a range of items, including:
– Blazers
– Pullovers
– Summer Dresses
– Summer Shirts
– Bags
– Sportswear

To ensure your satisfaction, we provide a hassle-free returns policy, making it the ideal time to plan ahead with confidence. Our streamlined returns process is designed for your convenience.

To participate in the sale, please visit our website at dobsons.com.au or visit us in-store. We also offer personalized fitting appointments during the sale period. You can book a 20-minute personalized fitting appointment online via your school page.
*Terms and conditions apply. The sale commences in store and online on September 1st, 2024.

Bully Stoppers

Parents and carers play an important role in identifying and preventing bullying.

Bullying is when a person or a group of people repeatedly and deliberately cause distress and harm to another person either in person or online. It is important to take all bullying incidents seriously and to work collaboratively with your child’s school.

Bully Stoppers can help you understand bullying. It will help you know if your child is being bullied or is engaging in bullying behaviours.

My child is using bullying behaviour

Children who use bullying behaviours need support to learn better ways of relating to others.

What can I do?

Stay calm and learn more about your child’s behaviour so that any bullying behaviours can be addressed. It can be upsetting to be told that your child has bullied others. Bullying is complex and changing. Children can do the bullying in one situation and be targeted by bullying in another.

Talk with your child

Discuss with your child why they might be behaving this way. Try to understand why they may be behaving in this way. Think about any issues or problems your child might be experiencing.

Explain why bullying is unacceptable

Help them understand what it is like for the person being bullied.

Ask them how they would feel if they were being bullied.

Make clear rules and consequences for their behaviour

Acknowledge appropriate behaviour and be consistent when dealing with inappropriate behaviour.

Consider other resources

Consider enrolling your child in a group program that helps children to manage their behaviour, learn appropriate social skills and relate in more positive ways with other people.

Seek professional help and support if you feel that your child’s bullying behaviour is part of a bigger behavioural or health problem.

Consider what’s going on at home

Does your child see good examples of how to deal with issues and resolve differences with others at home?

Have any major events taken place recently to upset your child (parents separated, death in the family, significant illness in the family, or siblings bullying your child)?

Increase supervision of your child when they are with other children.

For younger children, show them how to join in with other children in a friendly way:

• first observe a game and the other children
• look for a natural break in the game for joining in
• choose a person with a friendly face and ask them if you can join in
• praise your child when they play cooperatively with others.

Talk with the school

Discuss the behaviours with the school. A consistent and co-operative approach by both the home and school is important.

Our Learning in Prep

Our Learning in Prep

Term 4 is an exciting time for our Prep students as we approach the end of their first year of school. We are proud of their growth and effort and are eager to share some highlights from the term. This term, they enjoyed a fantastic excursion and participated in transition days to prepare for the next steps in their education. It’s amazing to see how much their confidence and enthusiasm for learning have blossomed!

Reading

This term, our focus is on comprehension, predictions, vocabulary, summarizing, and decoding strategies in our small group sessions. We are also incorporating some fairy tales to enrich our learning. These activities are helping to deepen students’ understanding and engage them in meaningful discussions during our reading sessions.

Writing

In writing, students are currently focusing on constructing sentences using the phonic sounds we are learning. They are challenging themselves to include adjectives and verbs in their sentences, and they are also working on improving their letter formation. We look forward to seeing their progress!

Thornhill Park Primary School Prep Grade Excursion to Diggers Rest Farm

What an unforgettable day our Prep Grade had at Diggers Rest Farm! The sun was shining as we set off on our adventure, filled with excitement for all the fun activities that awaited us. Upon arrival, we were greeted by the friendly farm staff who led us through a variety of delightful experiences. One of the highlights was handling adorable baby animals. Students got to gently hold rabbits, cuddle guinea pigs, and cradle fluffy chicks, filling the day with smiles.

While some groups were busy feeding the goats and sheep with special treats, others enjoyed a bumpy but fun tractor ride around the farm, waving at the animals as they passed by. We were thrilled to learn from our friendly farmers who took us to plant seeds in the garden, giving us the chance to get our hands dirty and experience the joy of growing our own food.

Next, the pony rides were a big hit! Some students showed incredible bravery as they took turns riding the gentle ponies, while others cheered them on with excitement. Meanwhile, another group was experiencing the fascinating process of milking a real cow. They even got to churn the milk into butter, which was a unique and exciting activity! After all that hard work, everyone enjoyed fresh crackers topped with the delicious butter they had made themselves.

As we wrapped up our visit, we just managed to sneak back onto the bus before the rain started pouring! It was perfect timing, and everyone settled in happily for the ride home. Throughout the day, our students were incredibly well-behaved on the buses, showing great respect for one another. Sitting together as a class during snack and lunch time, we shared stories about our favourite activities.

It truly was a fantastic day filled with laughter, fun, and wonderful memories. Thank you to everyone who made this excursion possible! We can’t wait for our next adventure!

STEM

In STEM, students in year 3/4 have been working in collaborative groups to investigate, design and make different mechanisms for a cardboard arcade game such as a flipper and a ball launcher.

Art

Year 1/2 Art Collages.

The students have created a drawing and used the method of ‘collage’ to fill in the design.

Halloween pumpkins

Physical Education

This term in PE, we have focused on developing skills used in basketball such as passing, catching, dribbling and shooting. We have been learning how to apply rules to games to ensure they are fun, safe and fair.

Performing Arts 

The Prep students have been learning how to identify different instruments in the orchestra. They showed their knowledge of a variety of instruments by pointing to them, as I called out the instrument’s names. This activity was to build on their knowledge of orchestras and the instrument families.

2024 School Terms    

Term 1  Tuesday 30th January till Thursday 28th March

Term 2  Monday 15th April till 28th June

Term 3  Monday 15th July till 20th September

Term 4  Monday 7th October till Friday 20th December

Important Dates – Term 4

2025 Prep Transition (8th Nov)

Monday 4th November – Curriculum Day (Student free day)

Tuesday 5th November – Melbourne Cup Day (Student free day)

Wednesday 6th November – Year 3/4 T20 Cricket

Thursday 14th November – Year 3/4 Soccer

20th – 22nd November  – Year 3 & 4 – Lady Northcote Discovery Camp

Tuesday 3rd December- Year 1/2 Cohort (End of year celebration Picnic @ school)

Wednesday 4th December – Year 6 Funfields

Tuesday 10th December – Whole School Transition

Thursday 12th December – Year 6 Graduation

Wednesday 18th December – Whole school performance and presentations

Term 4 – Ends Friday 20th December @ 12:30pm

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

Keep up the great work!

Students of the Week – Ending 25/10

Students of the Week – Ending 1/11

Cricket Victoria – Girls

Parents can register their child one of two ways through the registration portal;

1. Scanning the QR code in the attached flyer
2. Click the following link https://www.playhq.com/cricket-australia/register/64cd09