From the Principal

Yesterday, Athol Road Primary School featured in The Age newspaper as one of Victoria’s High Performing Schools in NAPLAN 2024 - what an incredible achievement! 

This is a moment to pause and celebrate the collective efforts of everyone in our school community. This accomplishment is a testament to what a collaborative approach can achieve. A big thank you to Mrs Harkness for leading Learning at ARPS, Mrs Gathercole for leading Wellbeing, our Learning Specialists for leading their teams and our Allied Health team for their expertise. Every teacher in every learning space, specialist teachers and every support staff member who show up daily with dedication, passion, and high expectations for every student, no matter where they are in their learning journey, has contributed to this success. It is the result of years of hard work, commitment, and continuous improvement in our practices.

While NAPLAN results are not the only measure of success, they do tell a story. They reflect our shared goal: to provide the best for our students, and for our students to want the best for themselves. I am deeply grateful for the partnership with our parents and families. Your trust and ongoing support allow us to focus on our work with the confidence that we are all working together to prioritise education and recognise the opportunities education brings!

Please take a moment to celebrate this achievement. High-five your children, recognise the efforts of teachers and staff, and acknowledge your own important role in supporting the educational journey. This achievement is a reflection of all the hard work, both exhausting and exhilarating, that propels us forward. It gives us all a sense of purpose and pride in what we do.

Thank you to everyone—students, staff, and parents. Let’s celebrate this moment together. 

I am certainly celebrating and am incredibly proud of what we have accomplished. 

We are all doing outstanding work!

Special Programs and Events

We have had a busy week this week with both Foundation – Year 2 Swimming Program (see page 3 for details) and the Year 4 Doxa Camp which concludes tomorrow (we will hear from our happy campers in our next and final newsletter for 2024).

We have an even busier fortnight ahead of us with the upcoming Statewide Transition Day, 2025 Foundation Family BBQ, Year 6 Luna Park Special Day, School Concert, Year 6 Graduation Dinner and Ceremony, Dux and Special Awards Assembly and the end of year Student Voice Reward Day.

Please ensure you are keeping up with all communication items on Sentral. We want to ensure full participation and celebration in the wonderful activities and events leading up to the end of the school year. 

Aussie of the Month

Congratulations to the November Aussie of the Month students: Kha in Year 4 and Aarin in Year 1.  Well done!!

The Key Values of Aussie of the Month are:

Fair go: not just how we apply ourselves but also in providing opportunity for all

Mateship: a generosity of spirit and compassion for those in need

Respect: of self, of others, our community, and the environment

Inclusion: acceptance and respect of difference

Carmel Nigro

Principal