New School Sign

Earlier this week, our new entrance sign was installed. It serves several purposes—most importantly, it helps families and visitors unfamiliar with our school find us more easily, and it reflects the modern, forward-thinking approach to teaching that we embrace at Bolinda Primary School. Next week, we expect our teardrop flags and banners to arrive; once they’re in place, they’ll be displayed around the grounds to further showcase our school values and add a splash of colour to our learning environment.

Fence Assessment

On Wednesday, I welcomed a Senior Advisor from the Department of Education to our school. This visit represents a significant step forward in securing support and funding to replace our perimeter fencing. We now have a detailed report from the site inspection, which we hope will help us move the project to the next stage. I’ll keep you posted on any further developments.

Child safety and wellbeing at Bolinda Primary School: information for families and the school community

Bolinda Primary School is committed to providing an environment where students are safe and feel safe.

Our child safety framework includes policies, codes and procedures that explain how we support and maintain the safety and wellbeing of our students and protect them from harm. These documents are available on our website: https://www.bolindaps.vic.edu.au/policies-documents

We are also committed to continuous improvement of our child safety framework. We are currently reviewing our child safety policies and practices to ensure they are up-to-date and effective.

Our students and families are important partners in this process. We welcome your feedback or ideas on ways we can improve our approach to child safety and wellbeing.

If you have any suggestions or comments, please contact me.

Whole School Reading

Our whole school got together last Wednesday for a quick reading session where our older students buddied up with younger classmates to read to them. Research shows that when older students read one-on-one with younger children, the little ones quickly become more fluent and confident readers. The initiative is a wonderful way for our students to connect and build friendships across year levels while supporting each other’s learning.

Dishwasher for the Kitchen Garden Program

This week, our Kitchen Garden program welcomed a helpful upgrade with the installation of a new dishwasher. Not only will this make operations smoother, but it will also reduce the water we use during clean-up. Sharon often stays long after everyone has gone to finish tidying up after Kitchen Garden sessions, so this will be a big help. I’m incredibly proud of how well this program is run and how it includes the whole school. Next, we’ll be adding splashback panels along the entire wall to keep the area looking neat and tidy.

Reconciliation Week

Last week at Bolinda Primary School, we proudly to be recognised Reconciliation Week through a variety of meaningful activities. One that I was lucky enough to see in action was with our Year 2/3/4 cohort, who engaged in a rich discussion about the meaning of Reconciliation Week. They delved into the history behind the observance, explored its significance for our community and country, and shared personal reflections on why reconciliation matters.

Starry Night Writing

Our Prep/1 students have been exploring the world around them through images, paintings and real-life objects, then using these as springboards for descriptive writing. By focusing on how an image makes them feel and capturing the finer details—colours, textures, movements—they’re learning to bring their ideas to life on the page. We are incredibly proud of how our youngest writers rose to the challenge: several students even stood up at assembly and confidently read their work aloud. Below is just a small selection of their pieces.

Improving writing skills has been a key focus for our school over the past two and a half years, and it’s wonderful to see the progress our P/1 learners are making. We can’t wait to watch them continue to grow as writers!

Bolinda Birthdays