From the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome back

Welcome back to Term 4. I hope you and your family had an enjoyable holiday time together. A warm welcome back to Mrs Charleson who will teach 3/4M for the first week of term and Mr Greenwood who will take PE for the first three weeks whilst Miss McCusker is on leave. We also look forward to welcoming our new Foundation children for 2022 to their Orientation Days shortly.  

‘Health Check’ Survey

Thank you to the many parents who were able to provide feedback through the school 'Health Check' survey last term. The responses and feedback are currently being collated and will be of great assistance to our School Board and Leadership Team continued forward and strategic planning. 

Staffing News

Congratulations to Miss Angelisa Marino on her wedding in the holidays. Angelisa returns to us at the start of Week 2 as Mrs Parrella! 

Miss Ashley Jeon has been with us at the school for the past two years as our Japanese teacher and we have appreciated the way in which she has grown our Japanese program. She has taught with warmth, passion, and innovation, and built our relationship with Eisugakkan, our sister school in Japan, through COVID, with our students able to maintain contact through Zoom meetings. Ashley has a real desire to move into mainstream primary teaching and to have the experience of teaching the same class of students throughout the days across the school year and has (sadly for us!) resigned to pursue this opportunity next year. We wish Ashley the very best and pray for God's blessing in this next chapter for her, whilst also being highly appreciative and thankful for all that she's brought to us at Golden Grove. 

We will advertise for a new Japanese teacher shortly, as we are keen to maintain a strong Japanese program, given the richness it brings to our curriculum as the students enjoy weekly lessons, as well as the excitement of interacting with Eisukoggan, our sister school in Japan, and to have study tours to Japan once more in the coming years for our students to enjoy and engage with Japanese culture. An added benefit for our many students who continue on to Endeavour College for their secondary education is that Japanese is a language option for Year 7-9 and onwards, so it provides a good foundation for language learning throughout schooling. 

We will also advertise for a Music teacher for 2022 so that we can offer weekly Music lessons for each class. This will complement our existing specialist curriculum programs for all students in Japanese, Art, and PE, providing a good breadth of opportunity for students to grow and excel in a range of areas, and to offer weekly lessons for the students in each of these four areas. 

Golden Grove Lutheran Church and Primary School Community Fete 

We are looking forward to our annual Golden Grove Lutheran Community Fete again this year which will be held on Sunday 17 October 2021. This is a combined initiative of the school and church and presents a range of great opportunities for our school families. 

On Friday 15 October, (today) we are holding a casual clothes day for the students, where families are invited to make a gold coin donation towards the school's Nachos food stall at the fete. 

The fete will be open from 11.00 am – 3.00 pm and there will be lots of free rides, food and drink stalls and activities on the day for all ages! 

Our school choir and some instrumental students will also be performing at 12.45 pm, and we will be offering hourly school tours throughout the day for prospective families who may be interested in viewing our classrooms and facilities. 

If you are able to volunteer to help out on the day, even for a small amount of time, all assistance is gratefully received - please register your help through our school website.

Ping-Pong-A-Thon 

A huge thank you to all of our school families and church community who were really engaged with our recent Ping-Pong-A-Thon and got right behind it so generously. We were able to raise over $10,000 in funds to combat slavery around the world, which is a wonderful way for our community to reach out to others in need. We also appreciate the efforts of Joel Schiller, our GGLC Youth Co-ordinator in arranging the event for us all. 

Australian Problem Solving Mathematical Olympiads 

We recently had a number of students participate in the Australian Problem Solving Mathematical Olympiads achieving pleasing results. A particular congratulations to Tahlia Perry, who received the 'Highest Individual Score' award. 

Class Placements 2022

A strongly considered and prayerful process is undertaken during the fourth term in regards to the placement of students in their class for 2022.  

Part of this process involves parents/caregivers providing any relevant information to the school for consideration; friendships, ongoing issues with peers, etc. Students will also be asked in the coming weeks about their friendship group/s and peers with whom they like to work. Please do not assume that we have remembered reasons for placement from previous years. You will need to communicate any thoughts or concerns that are still relevant. As a school, we guarantee that every child will be with at least one friend (who they have nominated). 

Many factors are considered in the placement of students including learning style/needs, emotional/social needs, gender-mix, personality traits. 

Parents/caregivers are asked to provide us with any information which you believe is relevant by Friday 6 November. 

Please do not request teachers (allocations to classes haven’t been finalised) as we will not accommodate those requests.  

It is preferred that you communicate via email to either Tim Kriewaldt kriewaldt.tim@goldengrove.sa.edu.au or Jayne Zadow zadow.jayne@goldengrove.sa.edu.au. All emails received will be acknowledged.  

As you would understand we take the process of allocation very seriously and believe that the final classes are the result of much work, thought, and prayer. It is important that you take this opportunity to share concerns or information as once classes are finalised (and released) there is no room for change. 

Year 1 Sleepover

Year 1s are looking forward to their upcoming 'sleepover' in Week 3 – a great program has been arranged for the students with a range of fun activities on offer. 

Blessings,

Will