Principal News 07/08/2026

Dear Banyan Fields Primary School Community,

We have kicked off Term 3 with lots of engaging activities for our students. We have had the Year 2 Big Day In and Potato Commonwealth Games, our Life Ed incursion with our very special guest, Harold, Footsteps have returned to work with the students in Years 3 and 5 in preparation for their concert this term, and the Year 6 students have attended weekly ‘My Best Self’ sessions. The teachers also enjoyed having conversations with parents and carers during their interviews. Make sure you are keeping up to date with what’s coming because there are lots of dates and events that will keep us busy over the coming weeks.

Tenacity: We try, we learn, we never give up.

Attendance Arrive To Thrive:

Annual Implementation Plan

Our Senior Education Improvement Leader (SEIL), Debby Chaves, visited the School Improvement Team this week to monitor our progress towards our goals and targets for 2026. The focus of our work has been on building our culture of professional learning communities, promoting attendance, and planning and implementing strategies to ensure every single student at our school. Debby was very congratulative of the work of the team to date and the plans in place for the remainder of the year. She recorded that Thriving Through Excellence is a highlight of the school’s work, as well as the establishment and success of our Parent Association.

We look forward to continuing our work and beginning to consider the next steps in our improvement journey into 2027 and beyond.

Equity: We include, we respect, we support.

Koorie Art Show – Young Mob 9

We are excited to be supporting our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to submit an art piece into the Koorie Heritage Trust Young Mob 9 Art Show.

Students who return a completed permission and entry form will have the opportunity to work with our Art Teacher, Courtney Beckwith, during additional art sessions throughout the school week to create and develop an artwork for submission.

This is a wonderful opportunity for our Koorie students to celebrate their culture, express their creativity, and showcase their artwork as part of one of Victoria's leading First Peoples art exhibitions.

https://kht.org.au/whats-on/events/koorie-art-show-young-mob-9/

Synergy: We listen, we learn, we grow together.

PLC

Industrial Action

We are grateful for the support of our community during our recent industrial action. Parents and carers did what they could to reduce the pressure on staff who were at school, thus ensuring that we could provide a safe environment for every student. The Australian Education Union have announced that they will engage in another day of stopwork on Wednesday, August 19th. We will keep you updated as we hear more.

Foundation Enrolments, 2027

All families who selected Banyan Fields as their first choice for 2027 have been offered a place. In order to help us prepare to welcome the students, please accept the offer at your earliest convenience. If you (or anybody you know) would like their child to attend Banyan Fields in 2027 and haven’t received an offer, please contact the office immediately.

Triad Visit

Our colleagues from Frankston Heights Primary School and Seaford Primary School visited this week to observe our Welcome Circle. They identified high levels of student engagement and the many benefits that having a dedicated time in the mornings to allow everybody to settle into the day.

Book Week Parade – Correction

We would like to apologise for an error in our previous newsletter regarding the Book Week Parade.

Please note the correct details are:

Wednesday 26th August

Book Week Parade: 9:00 am
Book Fair: Open for parents and carers to browse from 10:00 am in the STEM Foyer.

We apologise for any confusion and appreciate your understanding. We look forward to seeing our students dressed as their favourite book characters and welcoming families to the Book Fair afterwards.

Parent Helpers Needed

We are seeking parent volunteers to assist with a number of upcoming excursions and events this term.

These experiences provide valuable learning opportunities for our students and would not be possible without the generous support of our parent helpers. If you are available to volunteer your time, we would love to hear from you!

Upcoming Volunteer Opportunities

Year 1 – Cranbourne Royal Botanic Gardens Excursion: Wednesday 20 August
Year 5 – McCrae Homestead Camp: Monday 24 – Tuesday 25 August
Selected Year 3–6 Students – District Athletics: Wednesday 2 September
Year 4 – Wombat Corner Camp: Wednesday 9 – Friday 11 September
Year 6 – Melbourne Museum & IMAX Excursion: Wednesday 16 September

Interested in Helping?

If you are available to volunteer, please:

Contact the school office on 9783 1333
Email banyan.fields.ps@education.vic.gov.au
Speak with your child's classroom teacher.

Thank you for giving your time to support our students. Your assistance helps make these valuable learning experiences possible, and we truly appreciate your support.

Stewardship: We care for people, places, and possibilities.

Emergency Drill

Please be aware that we will run our termly emergency drill in the coming weeks so your child may speak about it at home. If you are visiting the school during a drill, you will be required to participate to ensure that all our processes are tight and clear to everybody. If you need to get to an appointment, please let the team know in advance and arrive a little earlier to allow for any delays that may occur as a result of this important safety practice.

Patrick Halpin - Principal

Jennifer Churcher - Assistant Principal

Sharleen Nason - Assistant Principal

Celebrating our Learning

Foundation

Year 1

Year 2

Art

Physical Education

STEM