Primary School 

From the Head of Primary 

Wow! What a busy, yet fun, end to Term One. Today students have delighted in ‘flipping it’ by dressing up as one of their favourite teachers, and our ECC students paraded their Easter Hat creations. Yesterday we all attended the Easter Chapel Service and listened to our school Chaplain and fellow students explain the real story behind Easter. Noah, Ruth, Amy, Samantha, Samuel, Maddy, Alex and Digby competently represented the Primary School, speaking about Easter during the service. This afternoon, our Year Four students, under Miss Steinert’s guidance, ran a sustainability showcase, highlighting all the wonderful things they have learnt this term. Well done Miss Steinert and the Year Four class. 

Easter Hat Parade 

Thank you for all the hard work and fun each parent and ECC student put into our annual Easter Hat Parade. DJ Pitman did a stellar job with the music and Miss Hard competently ran the parade to open up the Easter season and lead us into the holidays. 

Flip-It Dress-Up Day 

With the Secondary School students out for the day, the Primary School has taken control with an influx of students dressed as teachers and teachers dressed as students! It was fitting on Ms Dempster’s last day that there was an army of ‘Ms Dempsters’ getting around the school in floral dresses and Rossi boots! Even on long service leave, Mr Berryman also had a tribe of followers. Hats off to Jackson for pulling off the tutu better than Mr B himself! Students also enjoyed a pre-ordered sausage in a bun with funds raised going to the Women’s Shelter. Thank you for the efforts to make our final day of the term so enjoyable. 

Goodbyes 

It is with great sadness that we farewelled Mr Berryman on long service leave for a term, and Ms Dempster and Ms Steinert. We are looking forward to the return of Mrs Emilie Brown (also known as Ms Le Floch) and Ms Donna Diletti to the Year Two classroom. Ms Carys Nichols is re-joining our school, after some adventures in Perth at Guilford Grammar School, NSW at Lindisfarne Anglican School and more recently Albany Primary, to teach our Year Four class. We also look forward to former Head of Junior School, Ms Suzanne Youens re-joining the School in Term Three as our Learning Support Coordinator - Primary. Some wonderful inclusions to our teaching staff that guarantee to bolster our students’ learning experience at GSG.  

Horizons 

We have had an exciting term of Horizons offerings, and yesterday I was impressed by the final products of our Lego club, dance groups and Mr Hardey’s technologies. Daniel Cruse’s and Henry Turner’s car race was a highlight of my afternoon. The technology group has spent the term, under Mr Hardey’s guidance, pulling apart printers, TVs and computers (alongside a few broken remote-controlled cars) and repurposed the parts to make a range of vehicles. It was wonderful to see their creations come to life. Next term we will offer more activities including art, Poi circus skills, strength and conditioning training, French club and technologies. Our after-school care is projected to begin by Week Two, but more communication will be shared closer to the official opening.  

School Values and ECC Stars 

This past fortnight, we have looked at the value 'Gratitude'. At our ECC briefing, I shared the story of having not one, but two flat tyres on two different vehicles this week, and although the situation was frustrating, there were definitely things to be grateful for: like the portable air compressor, a patient kind, helpful staff member and my reliable brother. The students then shared what they are grateful for. It was fantastic to hear responses such as ‘The world’, ‘My family’, ‘My teachers’ and ‘The school.’ What a wonderful group of ECC students you are raising. Well done to our Stars of the Week: Freya and Alex Standish, Nina De Giambattista and Finn De Snoo. 

I truly hope you get to spend some quality, restful time with your children and families over the Easter period and school holidays, and look forward to welcoming students back to school on Wednesday 26 April.

Mrs Leah Field | Head of Primary