Primary School
The last week of term in Primary School has been a whirlwind of excitement, achievement and collaboration. It kicked off with the Interschool Cross Country event, where our school team displayed incredible spirit and determination. Amid cheers and encouragement, our athletes raced through fields and over obstacles, embodying the values of sportsmanship and resilience.
Collaboration was at the heart of our final week as students put finishing touches to their inquiry units. In year groups, they delved deep into topics ranging from caravans to Minecraft worlds, pooling their knowledge and creativity to produce presentations and displays that showcased their newfound expertise.
The best part about this term… in their own words
Sonny Williamson, Year Two - Making our marvellous mixtures at the Secondary School Science Lab.
Taylah Gent, Year Four L - Getting to write our suspense stories and learning all about how to make them scary.
Tate Eckersley, Year Four K - Training hard and developing skills with the Years Five and Six Eagles Cup team.
Olli Schaefer, Year Five - Just getting to hang out with all my friends at lunch and recess, and seeing our class grow with exciting new people.
Maddie McCutcheon, Year Six G - I’ve really enjoyed working on our puppet making project because you get to choose how they look and some of them have turned out quite scary looking!
Mrs Clifford, Pre-Primary - Walking to the Wild Space. We are so lucky that we get to learn with the sounds and the water, and hearing all the laughter from everyone when we go there.
As the term draws to a close, reflections on growth and achievement were shared during assemblies and House activities. Awards were presented not only for academic excellence but also for kindness, leadership and perseverance, highlighting the holistic approach to education our school embraces.
In sum, the fantastic last week of term encapsulated the essence of Primary School life—a blend of learning, friendship and fun.
Culture, Engagement and Excellence
Interschool Cross Country
Under unusual heat of the winter sun, the annual Interschool Cross Country event brought together spirited young athletes from five local schools. Year Three to Six students, their faces flushed with anticipation and determination, gathered at the starting line, eagerly awaiting the signal to begin their test of endurance and spirit. Each school was represented by a sea of proudly worn uniforms, each hue representing a team united in both friendly rivalry and mutual respect.
As the races begun, a wave of youthful energy surged forward. The pounding of feet and the shouts of encouragement echoed through the grounds. For many of these young runners, it was not just a race against their peers, but a personal journey to push their limits and celebrate their resilience.
The atmosphere was electric with excitement and camaraderie as the runners navigated the course. Cheers erupted at every turn as classmates urged their friends onward, and parents snapped photos to capture these moments of youthful determination.
In the end, while some students emerged as champions, every participant emerged victorious, in their own right.
The Interschool Cross Country event was not just a race, but a testament to the power of sport to unite, inspire and bring out the best in young athletes. As they departed, faces beaming and chests swelling with pride, they carried with them memories of a sunny day filled with sweat, camaraderie and the joy of representing their school community.
The Year One Playground Inquiry
The class started their inquiry project by looking at natural, managed and constructed features. They then brainstormed features of a park and travelled to ANZAC Peace Park, Eyre Park and Emu Point to further explore different features of parks and playgrounds. After researching different playgrounds, how play equipment is constructed and what materials they are made from, the Year One students designed their own playgrounds. Their design brief was to plan a playground that contained (at least) two natural features and two constructed pieces of equipment. The final part of the inquiry unit was to use their plans to create 3D playground models. The results were amazing! You are welcome to visit the ECC foyer if you would like to see these fabulous models for yourself.
Mrs Fiona Gouldthorp | Teacher
Year Five Minecraft Worlds
This term in Humanities and Social Sciences, Year Five has been inquiring into subjects such as government, elections and law making in Australia and learnt about governing systems such as democracy, autocracy, dictatorship, monarchy and oligarchy. We learned how laws are made in Australia and also how our elections are run.
Mr Osborne then assigned us the task of creating our own society. We wrote reports on how our society would be governed, how representatives would be elected, how laws would be passed and what celebrations would be recognised, and we had to describe how our society compared and contrasted to Australia.
In Technology, we then designed a Minecraft version of our society that included all the essentials required for the communities described in our reports. Some of the things that we made were: hospitals, police stations, banks, barns, farms, the government’s house, normal houses, schools, courts, shopping centres and other things essential for the survival of a thriving society.
Jessica Lee and Samuel Forgus | Year Five students
Briefing News
Primary School
Our House Leaders have been running our final Briefings this term with aplomb, demonstrating great preparation and planning. This week we celebrated students who have been displaying integrity during our school week.
Year Three – Raine Melia
Year Four K – Savannah Derrick
Year Four L – Olivia Till
Year Five – Edith Newman
Year Six G – Joshua Pages
Year Six N – Maggie Lester
ECC Briefing
We have made it to the end of the term. The ECC students are looking forward to a well-earned holiday. It has been a busy week in Kindergarten with end-of-term work and celebrations. Year One has been busily finishing their playground designs, and I have seen wonderous medicines being made in Year Two. I would like to wish all the ECC students a wonderful, fun, and safe holiday.
Star Awards
Kindergarten – Evie Lawrance
Pre-Primary – Pavleen Grewal
Year One – Benji Fergie
Year Two – Eymen Carter
Value Awards - Integrity
Kindergarten –Larni Jefferis
Pre-Primary – Ally Buxton
Year One – Amaya Fourie
Upcoming Events - Term Three
Week One
Monday 15 July – Pupil Free Day
Wednesday 17 July – Years Three to Twelve NAIDOC Assembly
Friday 19 July – Winter Sport and Djinda photos
Friday 19 July – Years Four to Six, Parklands and Primary Voices Choir Workshop
Friday 19 July – Years Four to Six, Parklands and Primary Voices Choir Concert, in the Hall, 3.30pm to 4.30pm
Week Two
Monday 22 July to 25 July - Years Four to Six, Artist in Residence
Have a wonderful and safe break. Thank you so much for your continued support.
Mrs Hayley Ranger and Miss Carys Nichols | Acting Heads of Primary
Primary Interschool Cross Country Carnival
This year’s Primary Interschool Cross Country event was a huge success enjoyed by everyone involved. There were many wonderful performances by our students as they showed great fight and determination working extremely well as a team producing strong performances across all year levels.
Schools taking part from the Great Southern region included Bethel Christian School, St Joseph’s College, Parklands Primary School and Australian Christian College. I would like to congratulate all our competitors for the wonderful effort they put into the event and the sportsmanship they displayed; they were a credit to the school.
Well done to all of our place getters.
Year Three Third Place Boy Mason Fourie
Year Four Runner-Up Champion Girl Georgia Montgomery
Year Four Third Place Girl Sophie Mitrovski
Year Five Champion Girl Edith De Jonge
Year Six Runner-Up Champion Girl Ruth Toomey
Year Six Third Place Girl Alida Sitnikoski
Year Six Champion Boy Robbie Fergie
Champion School
First - Great Southern Grammar 760pts
Second - St Joseph’s College 716pts
Third - Australian Christian College 542pts
Fourth - Bethel Christian College 491pts
Fifth - Parklands Primary School 412pts
Mr Stephen Berryman | Primary School Sports Co-ordinator