Principal's Report

School Production - Shrek

What a triumph we witnessed on Tuesday and Wednesday nights this week with the performances of the 2026 Production, "Shrek Jr". What a privilege it was seeing the joy on the faces of our talented performers, as well as the proud family and friends in the audience. The rave reviews have been rolling in!

As noted after the second show, these performances were the culmination of not only 3 terms of hard work on rehearsal and preparation, but also as far back as 12 months ago when the initial planning began behind the scenes.

An event such as this brings out everything that is wonderful about our beautiful little community. The number of enthusiastic volunteers have been incredible, but it is only through the support of our community that we can even have a show in the first place, through supporting fundraisers, buying tickets and getting the students to and from the theatre. Thank you all.

We are planning to celebrate our production crew and volunteers at an upcoming assembly, so I won't name individuals here, but it would be remiss of me not to take the time to acknowledge the dedication, skill and sheer hard work of our director, Nick Kong, and performing arts teacher, Lena Zappia. In Nick, we are so incredibly lucky to have a genuine star of stage and screen as a teacher in our school, let alone as an overqualified director of our primary school show. 

For Lena, it is incredible to think that only 18 months ago, Lena had never taught Performing Arts beyond a few days here and there as a relief teacher. I'm not sure I've worked with a person as willing to just 'give it a go', more often than not to great success. Lena's work in preparing our students for the show throughout this year has been outstanding.

Thank you Nick and Lena.

Beyond Nick and Lena, thank you to each and every member of staff who has given their time and energy to the show this week, as well as in the lead up. From the glamour roles with fancy headsets through to those with the toughest job of all - supervising the excited students waiting backstage - we are so grateful for your efforts.

Finally, I need to acknowledge the 300 or so stars of the show, our students. I have seen quite a few shows over my years in schools - I don't recall a cast so well prepared and professional as our 2026 students. So many great memories for them, and for those of us who were watching.

A little bit self-indulgently, I also want to give a quick shout-out to a group of professionals that I got to see up close through the dress rehearsal and both shows - the (student) sound and light operators. James, Sofia, Riley and Bodie, you were magnificent!

I just need to find a way to get that "Morning Person" song out of my head, it's been there for three days...

2027 Centenary Fair - We Need You!

With the production done and dusted, attention now shifts to our major event of 2027, our school fair. The fair next year also happens to coincide with a few things that happened 100 years ago, back in 1927. Things like the opening of Parliament House in Canberra, the death of gangster Squizzy Taylor, that black and white football team winning the VFL Premiership, Heisenberg coming up with his uncertainty principle, the invention of PEZ, and more importantly than any of that, the opening of Box Hill South Primary School at 57 Birdwood Street, Box Hill South, Victoria, Australia!

We will find many ways to celebrate our Centenary, but the Fair will be a major milestone and opportunity to reflect on 100 years of education on our site. 

The 2025 Fair was a roaring success, beyond all expectations from both a community engagement and financial perspective. We never anticipated that the proceeds would be not only be able to re-resource our STEAM program, but also solve our long-standing problem of inadequate heating and no cooling in our school gym. No more graduation saunas for us!

To ensure the success of the 2027 Centenary Fair, we need your help! We had a wonderful committee in 2025, led by the incredible Kasia as Fair Coordinator. While many committee members have put their hands up to be involved again (thank you!), Kasia has stepped back from the Coordinator role due to being unable to commit the time to the role. Kasia, thank you for your wonderful leadership!

This means that we are seeking a volunteer to take on the Coordinator position for 2027. As much as we value the commitment of volunteers in all roles, we simply will be unable to proceed with the Fair without a person in the coordinator position.

If you feel that the role is something you would be able to do, please contact Mel in the school office or email roberts.mccubbin.ps@education.vic.gov.au If you're a little bit interested but unsure, we would happily connect you with Kasia for an obligation-free chat about what's involved.

Projects Update

• Toilets have been painted.

• Annual compliance checks have occurred on all electrical infrastructure.

• Additional outdoor lighting has been added to enable safer entry and exit when attending after-hours events.

• The new veggie garden area continues to progress, with our volunteers continuing to do an amazing job, not long now until planting and the arrival of our chickens from their temporary home!

• Our new electronic sign on Birdwood St has been installed and is awaiting final clearance to flip the switch and turn it on.

• Some extra soccer goals have been purchased (thanks PFA!) for the green synthie area.

Peter Watson

Principal