We have reached the second last week of term 2, which is the halfway point of the year.  We have seen amazing growth from many of our students and there have been many amazing events taking place at our school.  In Term 3 we will have our first School Review, which will guide our school forward for the next 4 years.  We are looking forward to these discussions, as it will give us a clear focus to continue to great work we are doing so far.  We will also have our first camps for our Year 3/4 and Year 5/6 students and we will start enrolling students for 2025.

Enrolments for 2025

We are expecting around 200 Preps in 2025 and have received pre-enrolments of around 75 students so far.  If you know of someone or if you have a child who will be starting with us in 2025, we ask that you fill out the pre-enrolment form, so that we can get an enrolment form to you quickly after the July 30^th deadline.  Enrolling your children early is important because it enables us to employ the correct number of teachers for 2025 and enables your child to be part of the transition process in Term 4.

New Staff

We would like to welcome Aloi Tuariki to our school in the role of Student Mentor and Guidance.  She will work with students to talk through different emotions they may be feeling and help them to put things into perspective.  She will also provide them with skills and strategies when dealing with issues or challenges that they may be facing.

Parking and crossing the roads safely

I know I speak about it a lot, but it is an ongoing issue that I need everyone to be aware of and to help with.  Parking out the front of the school is illegal and can incur a fine.  It is a pick up and drop off zone and when used correctly will make an enormous difference to traffic flow.  On Friday afternoon, after our assembly I noticed that this space was being used correctly.  It was amazing how well the traffic flowed when people weren’t queuing up.  I would also remind you to use the two designated crossings to cross the road.  The ‘Speed Hump’ is not a crossing and is used way too often by families.  Please try to do your best to keep all of our students safe by doing the right thing.

SSGs

Mrs Payton and Mr Bartlett have just conducted 79 Student Support Group meetings over the last 2 weeks.  These meetings are designed to ensure we are providing the necessary supports to students with additional needs and are a forum for positive improvements with students.  Our aim in these meetings is to provide support to students to be the best they can be.  We thank parents for their attendance at these meetings and particularly for engaging positively with our staff to have a clear plan to ensure improved student outcomes as we move through to the second half of the year.  A huge thanks to Mrs Payton for getting these sorted and to all the teachers for writing the necessary Individual Education Plans and attending these meetings to discuss future and current success.

End of Term

A reminder that Friday 28^th June is the end of Term 3.  We will be finishing at 2.30pm with an assembly taking place at 2.10pm.  Term 3 begins on Tuesday 16^th July as we will be having a Curriculum Day on the Monday.

Have a great holiday and we’ll see you at the start of Term 3 on Tuesday 16^th July.

Darryl Spiteri

Principal

Congratulations to 12B who achieved the highest attendance for

the week ending 14th June!

Congratulations to 12C who achieved the highest attendance for

the week ending 21st June!

We also congratulate 12F who achieved the best overall attendance for all of term 2. 

They will enjoy a BBQ with Mr Spiteri in the last week of term.

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 STEM

Foundation students have been investigating the properties of different materials.

This week they showed off their skills bydesigning and then making a Marvellous Hat for a specific purpose.

Year 1/2 students have been exploring light and sound, to complete the unit students created a poster of their learning from the term.

Year 3/4 students have enjoyed coding their way through a series of puzzles designed to develop their understanding of algorithms.

Year 5/6 students have designed and coded some fantastic games in using Scratch.

Visual Arts 

The students in 5/6C are continuing their learning about Egyptian Pharoah masks in Art. During the past week the students have included details and blue striping to their masks. They will include further details this week that includes a cobra head piece, jewels and a chin feature.

These masterpieces will be on display at our Art Show on the 6^th September 2024.

Interoception and self-regulation

Supporting social-emotional skills

At Thornhill Park Primary School, we teach the students about their emotions, and talk a lot about self-regulation.

Our bodies send us signals all the time through physical changes like our heartbeat slowing down or speeding up, our muscles tensing and our breath changing. These changing signals help us to recognise how we are a feeling, such as happy, anxious, hungry or hot. Tuning into and understanding these internal signals is called interoception. Good interoceptive awareness can help children notice big emotions building up before they become overwhelming.

Building interoception skills can support children and young people to:

• self-regulate their emotions and feelings,
• be calm and engage with learning,
• have positive wellbeing and
• improve their academic performance.

Reminder: 2024 CSEF Applications close on Monday.

Parents/carers wishing to apply for CSEF payments for 2024 must submit their application form by 24th June 2024.

Change of Clothing

Can we please ask parents/carers with children in early years to make sure their children always have a spare set of school clothes in their bags. Sometimes accidents can happen or it can be wet and muddy outside, so a change of underwear, pants/shorts/dress and socks can be a good idea to have in schools bags all the time.

Make sure that all items your child brings to school are labelled with their name.

Action Plans

If your child has received an asthma or allergy action plan in their school bag, please ensure it is taken to your local a general practitioner (GP) to be filled out and provided back to the school.

This plan outlines specific instructions for managing your child’s asthma or allergies, including identifying triggers, recognizing symptoms of an allergic reaction, and administering necessary medications in case of an emergency.

This documentation is required for your child to attend excursions and camps. Additionally, if your child requires medication, please ensure that it is provided to the staff in the front office.

If your child no longer suffers from asthma, we would greatly appreciate it if you could email us at Thornhill.park.ps@education.vic.edu.au and let us know.

Event Reminder: 2024 Year 5/6 Camp – Weekaway – First Instalment Due

Full payment for this event is due on the Friday 23th August via the Thornhill Park Primary School Compass Parent Portal.

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

Keep up the great work!

Students of the Week – Ending 14/06

Students of the Week – Ending 21/06

Congratulations to the following students who are celebrating a birthday in June & July!

We hope you had a lovely day!

Zoya PA

Dua PB

Monty 12C

Anoosh PF

Saroop 12A

Adelise 12C

Nimrat 56C

Ishaan Reddy PD

Fabian PE

Genesis 56C

Avneet PA

Lucas   12G

Prabhraj 12G

Ali12A

Tuli Lui 12F

Jaideep 56A

Ellie 56A

Faramadeoluwa 56B

Summer PA

Mila PF

Fateh 34B

Gayansa 34D

Pauli 56B

Azalea PC

Nikshitha 12E

Aarsh 34F

Keileb 56C

Sriyan 12D

Irfan 34E

Harfateh 12D

Inaya 34E

Maryam 56B

Alexa 56A

Jordan 12C

Jaspreet 34A

Gunreet PC

Tracey-Betty 12E

Nathan PA

Seth Ernest PD

Dash 12F

Kris PF

Journey 56D

Fani 34F

Miracle Lucy PD

Evaleen 56A

Ayana 12B

Aarav 12F

Guntaas 12D

Ariella 34B

Eshaal 12F

Loralai 12G

Vansh   56D

Mahanya PA

Lillian 34D

Alira 34A

Awande 34D

Rehmat 12H

Frankie 12B

Mannat Kaur 34A

Charlotte 12B

Ava 34A

Zach 56A

Beniam 56D

Smyra PB

Cricket Star Academy

Cricket Star Academy is delighted to announce that they will be hosting Cricket programs at Thornhill Primary School from Term 2, 2024.

To determine which days/times are the most convenient for you, please kindly complete the online EOI form below by 5pm Friday 10th May 2024 to register your child’s interest in joining any of our programs. 📝 
https://forms.gle/P9ACGAvf3VdycrXeA 

Please note:
These programs will be open to any of your children – students and siblings! 😊 
All enquiries about cost and program inclusions etc. should be directed to Cricket Star Academy, not the school. 

Cricket Star Academy is part of Sport Star Academy (SSA), a leading provider of sporting programs in schools across Australia and we are delighted to support Thornhill Primary School in being able to develop a connected, inspirational and supported learning community in a dynamic and stimulating environment where children achieve their potential and become confident and contributing citizens.

At SSA, we believe in setting children up for success, today, tomorrow and in the future. Our driven, all-star team does this by providing a professional and nurturing learning environment that builds a child’s confidence, teaches them skills, creates lifelong memories, and gives the parent back time.

We understand that each child has a different pathway. Whether that’s from beginner to elite, shy to confident or solo player to team player, these programs are a child’s pathway to thrive. 🌱

We look forward to having you join in on the fun! 😊 

For more information:

https://profile.mysideline.com.au/register/entity?data=eyJlbnRpdHlJZCI6NTM0NDczMjIsImVudGl0eVR5cGUiOiJwcm9ncmFtIn0%3D&source=rugby-league

Coerver Soccer @ Thornhill Park PS

Commencing on July 22, 2024
Time: 3:15pm – 4:15pm
Cost: $180 for 9 weeks

If you are interested, please scan the QR code or visit www.coerver.com.au for more information.

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 2

Term 2 – Commences on Monday 15th April

Wednesday 26th June – Athletics Day Years 3-6

Friday 28th June – End of Term 2 – June at 2.30pm.  An assembly will take place at 2.10pm on this day.

Important Dates – Term 3

Student free day – Monday 15th of July

Term 3 – Commences on Tuesday 16th July

Friday 2nd August – Year 1 & 2 – Melbourne Zoo Excursion

Monday 2nd September – 4th Sep – Year 5 & 6 – Weekaway Camp

Friday 6th September – Art Show (2pm – 6pm)