Leadership Report
It was a long weekend, but we want to thank our incredible Newlands Community for proudly representing Newlands Primary at the Celebración Mexicana del Día de Muertos and the Catrina Walk at Federation Square. It was a sea of colour and such an amazing celebration! A huge thank you to Abner, Aggie, Claire, Perla, Tere, and Edgar for creating such a beautiful ofrenda and sharing the spirit of Newlands Primary with the Spanish-speaking community.
After weeks of excitement, our students finally took the field for our first-ever Bilingual Schools World Cup, competing against ten of Victoria’s bilingual schools. It was the first time all our network’s students came together. It was wonderful to see all the students teaching each other new phrases and sharing their cultures. We all know Raul is incredible, but the event he created was simply spectacular. A massive congratulations to him for all his effort, we’re so lucky to have such an inspiring person leading our Physical Education program!
Our fabulous Buildings and Grounds Sub-Committee has organised the final Working Bee for the year. This is a great opportunity for our community to come together and give the school a little extra love before our final major community event for 2026. These afternoons are always filled with sunshine, laughter, and teamwork with parents putting in the hard yards while the kids enjoy running around the grounds.
Our 1/2 families are celebrating this Friday night as their children take part in the much-anticipated 1/2 Sleepover, their first Newlands camping experience! A big thank you to all the teachers who are giving up their Friday night to make this special memory possible. The students can hardly wait!
As I was attending a principal conference and cheering on Newlands at the Bilingual Cup this week, I didn’t have the chance to visit classrooms but I do want to give a massive shout-out to my Morning Maths Group. It has been such a joy working with these hardworking and dedicated students as they build their fluency skills.
Today was the first of our cohort transition sessions. Students explored the learning worlds that will become their 2026 classrooms and engaged in play-based activities. It was wonderful to see students engaging with their 2026 peers and the excitement was felt throughout all of the cohorts! We look forward to another cohort transition in Week 7.
Unfortunately, our vibrant Sole has become unwell and is not expected to return to school for two weeks. We are confident she will recover in this time. She will be replaced by Guido, a just as vibrant Argentian teacher. As discussed last week, Florencia and Paula (1/2) will be leaving Newlands on the 30th of November to complete studies in Argentina. There replacements will be communicated soon.
We look forward to seeing you all at the Working Bee!
Thank you,
Luke