Principal's Report
Thank you for a great start to the year. The way our students and staff have modelled our BPS values, supporting each other with an open mindset and a smile. This has been a challenging term, in some ways even more challenging than normal term one. I know the students and staff are all very much ready for this Friday to come. Equally I know our community is thankful and proud of what our teachers and students have achieved. Thank you to all staff who have made a contribution beyond that expected during the term.
I would like to wish everyone a safe and enjoyable Holiday and look forward to everyone’s safe return for the start of term 2 on Tuesday April 22nd. A reminder that Friday 25th April is the ANZAC Day Public Holiday.
LUCINDA BIRD
As you would have read in my compass message it is with great sadness that we shared the news of the passing of our student, friend and classmate Lucinda Bird. She was a kind, clever and brave person who inspired us everyday. Our thoughts are with her family, friends, and the school community during this difficult time. We will miss her smiling face and positive attitude at school and in her memory we can strive to be kind to each other and enjoy learning at BPS together, just like she did. Please see the compass message for further details about the Celebration of Life.
CROSS COUNTRY
What an amazing day we had last Wednesday with the whole school Cross Country. An outstanding day and I was very proud of the students of BPS, they way they behaved and most importantly the way they encouraged and supported each other to achieve their very best. A huge congratulations to Merissa and her team of volunteers to a most successful day and an experience which saw each of our students celebrated and successful. Well done to those who will move on to the district events, we look forward to hearing more details next term.
HOLIDAYS WORKS
During the upcoming holiday break, significant maintenance and improvement works will be undertaken across the school. The scheduled works include concreting, security upgrades, carpark line marking, and electrical maintenance, with heavy machinery and vehicles present on-site throughout the break. Families utilising the holiday program will receive separate communication regarding modified access arrangements, and students will be supervised at all times while on school premises.
We appreciate that many families enjoy using our school facilities during the holidays, but we ask for your understanding and cooperation during this period to maintain a safe environment for everyone.
Chinese Day Celebration Brings Culture to Life!
We are very excited to see our school come to life today with the vibrant sights, sounds, and flavours of China as we celebrate Chinese Day with great enthusiasm! Students and staff will embrace the rich traditions of Chinese culture through exciting activities, traditional games, performances and an amazing Art show.
The atmosphere was further enriched by students and teachers dressing in traditional Chinese attire, and the very lucky year 6 students who enjoyed a dumpling lunch - adding to the festive spirit.
This celebration provided a fantastic opportunity for our school community to appreciate the wonderful Chinese program ran by Miss Yi. Thank you to Yi for the incredible organisation of the day and everyone who participated and made the event a memorable success!
WELCOME PICNIC AND HOLI FESTIVAL
On the 21st we held our welcome picnic and Holi Festival celebration. A great celebration and wonderful way to bring our community together. Thank you to the parents who organised and the great fun which was had by all in attendance - there's even still remnants of the colour on the oval! A huge thank you to Shalini Pandey - an ex BPS parent who came back to organise all the yummy Indian food for the night! Another big thank you to Bec Pooley, the BPS Social and Fundraising Committee and all the volunteers for organising and running another successful BPS event
SCHOOL COUNCIL
I would like to take this opportunity to update you on the School Council Election process.
I am pleased to announce the results of the election that was recently held. It is fantastic that we had a number of parents wanting to be involved in the operations of the school and as always encourage families to be involved through classrooms, BPS Social and Fundraising Committee or School Council.
School Council for 2025.
Parent Members:
Chrisanthy Carman
Anthony De Castella
Drew Rudland (President)
Maurice Leung
Chris Pantlin
Ryan Mallia (Vice President)
Warwick Hansen (Treasurer)
Claire Newstead-Sinclair
Maria Haidermota
Staff:
Andrew Cock
Marianne Fusillo
Daniel Liebrich
Wendy Bennett
Kirsten Goss
I would like to also acknowledge the work of councillors not returning, Shirlee Chan and Melissa Gaunt.
Mountain to Melbourne
It was so wonderful having Emma-Rose Parsons make it in the nick of time to come to assembly on Friday (She told me that she had to sprint the last couple of kms to make it in time to us!). Emma-Rose Parsons ran over 100km passing through Healesville, Angliss, Maroondah, and Box Hill Hospitals, finishing at Eastland raising money to support pediatric departments - a cause close to many of our families hearts.
I want to acknowledge the number of families that joined in the finish at Eastland and particular thanks to Esra Uzunbay, Molly Lawlor and Henry from 5T for running our BPS stall and
EARLY FINISH
A reminder that we finish Term One on Friday April 4th at 2.30pm, we will end a very busy Term. Please make sure your pick up arrangements are adjusted for this earlier finish.
Have a wonderful break and I looked forward to seeing you all back on Tuesday 22nd April.
