Altona Green Primary School Newsletter

A Message from David & Cam...

Term 4 has started well and it will be the end of the year before we know it. As usual, Term 4 is packed with a whole heap of organisational tasks that go into setting up for 2024 to ensure it is another successful year as well as many events and activities across all year levels to support student's academic and social/emotional development (please check out the curriculum newsletters later in this newsletter) and to celebrate the year.

 

Please also have a look at the 'Important Term 4 events' section of this newsletter and add all the important dates to your calendars. We hope to see as many of you as possible at all the upcoming events!

Year 6 Canberra Camp

Hi, I'm Abby from 6C and I loved the school camp this year. It was an amazing experience for all the year six students. We went to places like Parliament House, The High Court of Australia and many more places based of what we have been learning about in the classroom back at school. I also really enjoyed the free time we got every night after our outings during the day. It was so much fun hanging out with the other kids in my cabin and in some of the other cabins. All up it was an awesome camp and I hope that the year six classes to come have as much fun as we did.

 

Hi, I'm Asreet from 6C and I also loved the school camp this year. It was a spectacular camp that had many fun events for us to do. I loved each place however my favourite was the High Court as we got to see the court in session which was good. But overall I will never forget the cabin time in our cabins where we just chatted and chatted. The camp was a wonderful event. Big thanks to all the teachers who made camp happen and on behalf of the 6s  thank you so much for a camp that will never be forgotten.

PACER Rebate Information

Students from our school have recently undertaken and educational tour of the national capital. Students will be given the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational programs with a focus on Australia’s history, culture, heritage, and democracy.

 

The Australian Government recognizes the importance of all young Australians being able to visit the national capital as part of their Civics and Citizenship education. To assist families in meeting the cost of the camp, the Australian Government is contributing funding of $45 per students under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate program towards those costs. The rebate is paid directly to the school upon completion of the camp.

Election BBQ & Bake Sale

We just wanted to thank all the volunteers who baked those delicious goodies and/or spent time out of their weekend to host our BBQ and bake sale. The day was a great success with a constant stream of buyers throughout and we have only heard positives about the food on offer. We know that time is precious so we greatly appreciate the efforts of those in our community who came along and helped - THANKS!!

 

A special mention to Tom Brockbank, Liz Oblack and the Reynolds family who all dedicated significant time to make this a success.

Student Leadership

Earlier this term Cam spoke to the Grade 5 students about formal leadership opportunities in Grade 6 as well as the process for applying for our School Captain positions. It was great to see so many students interested in applying for this role and we are looking forward to receiving a number of quality application letters! 

 

The quality of our next generation of leaders was on full display last Friday when Connor, Georgia, Brooklyn and Jensen, all from Grade 5, ran our school assembly in the absence of our current school captains who were returning from Canberra. They all did a brilliant job and I received positive feedback from both staff and parents on how clearly they spoke and how well organised the assembly was - fantastic work! 

2024 Classes and Parent/Carer Requests.

The leadership team are currently working through 2024 planning, class structure and recruitment processes, and the process for 2024 class formations will soon commence. This process is incredibly important and we spend a lot of time creating class lists that ensure all students are set up for success in the following year. All students make a list of friends that they would like to be placed with and we try to ensure that everyone has at least one of these friends in their future class.

 

If you believe you have information that you feel is necessary to support us in creating class lists for 2024, please put your requests in writing and send to me (david.king@education.vic.gov.au) no later than Friday 27th October. You do not need to send through your child's friend requests as they have the opportunity to do this themselves at school.

 

Please understand that I do not take requests for individual teachers and that whilst all requests will be considered not all will be able to be accommodated. Please also note that requests made last year do not carry over and should be made again via email if you believe it should still be considered.

Students Leaving AGPS in 2024

A further reminder that we would greatly appreciate it if parents / carers please notify the school as soon as possible if your child/ren will not be returning to AGPS in 2024. Please contact the office 9360 0777 or altona.green.ps@education.vic.gov.au to let us know.

Hats Reminder

A reminder that in Term One and Term Four all students are required to wear a broad-brimmed hat for outdoor activities, this includes recess, lunch and Physical Education lessons. Please support your child by reminding them to pack their hat and ensure their name is clearly marked so it can make its way back to them if it gets accidentally left outside.

Important Term 4 Events

Term 4 is an extremely busy term with a number of key events taking place that celebrate the year and also events that are critical to the successful running of the 2024 school year.

  • Transition - We will welcome our 2024 preppies to our school in November to begin their transition program. We will also have a series of step-up days where current students are given the opportunity to get a taste of what the next year may bring. We always offer a really robust transition program that supports all of our students to feel comfortable and confident for the next stage of their education.
  • Statewide Step-Up Day - On Tuesday 12th December all students will meet their 2024 classroom teacher in their 2024 classroom. It is a very exciting morning and is the culmination of a significant amount of work to ensure that the 2024 classes are set up for success!
  • Graduation - The Year 6 students will be busy planning and preparing for their special night on the Thursday 14th December. This is always a wonderful event as we remember and celebrate the students' time here at Altona Green.
  • Grandparents & Special Person's Day - We look forward to welcoming all the grandparents and other special people to our school on Friday 27th October. Please remind those that you would like to attend and see details that were posted on Compass.
  • End of Year Celebration - Debbie McKenna is busily planning for our end of year concert. This event will take place in the evening of the 7th December - save the date! We can't wait to celebrate the year together as a whole school!
  • Christmas Fun Day - On Friday 15th December, we will have a Christmas Fun Day during the day. This is a fun day where students participate in a range of activities, there may also be a return of the 'Dunk the Teacher' activity! There is a rumour that the Grinch may also make an appearance!
  • Assembly - Assembly runs alternate weeks to the newsletter and is held in either the gym or under Gumbuya depending on the weather. The remaining assemblies this term are:
    • 27/10 - 6F - this assembly will be held at 9.15am due to Grandparents Day in the afternoon
    • 10/11 - 2/3T
    • 24/11 - PJ & PB
    • 8/12 - 1H
    • 20/12 - final school assembly (no class performance)
  • Pupil Free Day - A reminder that Monday 6th November is the Term 4 pupil free day.  The staff will be using this day for assessment and reporting. All day care is available at TeamKids for this day.

Take care,

 

Dave & Cam