Principal's Message

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Welcome Back

It has been great to welcome back staff, students and their families this week after what we hope was a relaxing and enjoyable Easter holiday break.  Our curriculum day on Monday has resulted in a slightly shorter week for students however they have all returned ready and eager to learn, no doubt excited to also catch up with their friends.  Looking forward to a great term ahead for all! 

New Students

This week we have had 5 new students commence with us at Gray Street Primary.  We welcome Bakshish (Prep) and Asis (Grade 5), Cohen (Grade 1) and Irvine (Grade 2), and Mia (Grade 1), along with their families, to not only our school but to the Hamilton community.

Staff Leave – Start of Term 2

As announced in our last newsletter, we have commenced this term with some staff members taking some well-earned additional leave. Leesa in the office and Ms Hannah will both be returning next week after some time away travelling, whilst Mr Watt departed during the holidays for his overseas adventure.  Mr Watt is due to return in week 4 of term 3 and is being replaced in Physical Education by Mrs Sheree McGinley.  Ms Brown is also on four weeks’ leave and is being replaced in the Art room by Mr Ben Stephens.

Hamilton’s ANZAC Day Parade

The traditional Hamilton ANZAC Day Parade will be taking place on Thursday 25th April and once again our students have been invited to participate.  Children are encouraged to come along dressed in their school uniform and meet outside our school gates on Gray Street at 9:45am.  Parents are also welcome to march with the group or walk along beside the parade on the footpath. 

The parade will travel along Gray Street, then Brown Street and then into Lonsdale Street, stopping at the Vietnam, R.A.A.F. and Ted Kenna Memorials, and also the Memorial Gates along the way. The procession will then make their way into the Melville Oval Cenotaph on the corner of Lonsdale Street and Thompson Street for the remainder of the service.

We hope to have a large number of Gray Street Primary students in attendance as we remember those who made sacrifices and fought for the freedom we enjoy today.

School ANZAC Day Service

Due to the ANZAC Day Public Holiday next Thursday, we will be holding our own school ‘ANZAC Day Service’ at school on the Wednesday.  Our service will be led by our School Leaders with students from our senior classes also involved in acknowledging the importance of ANZAC Day, highlighting the involvement in the past of former Gray Street students.  Our school is quite unique, with a number of War Memorial items located within our main school building.  If you haven’t had the opportunity to see these and would like to do so, please feel free to call into school next week, we will be happy to show you! 

LEST WE FORGET.

School Cross Country

Our annual School Cross Country for all students in grades 3 to 6 will be taking place on Monday 29th April at Lake Hamilton.  Children will depart school at 1:40pm and will be transported to the venue by bus ready for the event to commence promptly at 2:00pm.  All students run along a course of approximately 2km that commences near the playground/BBQ area on the Rippon Road side of the lake with the finish line located in the parking area near the Hamilton Rowing Club boat shed.  To ensure the safety of all students, we request that families in attendance please find an alternate place to park.  All students will then be transported back to school by bus at the conclusion of the event.  We are looking forward to the day and hope that once again we have a large number of parents in attendance to cheer on and support our students.

2025 Prep Parent Information

Preparations are under way for our annual 2025 Prep Parent Information Night and School Tours.  These sessions provide parents, both new and current, with an opportunity to visit our school and learn about what we have to offer at Gray Street Primary.  These sessions will be taking place on Tuesday 7th May for our school tours with the information night then on Thursday 9th May.  Specific times are included in the flyer below and we encourage you to contact the school to register your interest for attending either of these opportunities. Some current families may not feel the need to attend any of these sessions however we do encourage you to contact the office to ensure we have you (and your child) on our list so an Enrolment Pack can be sent home.

Sporting Achievements

During the school holidays one of our talented students, Ruby in grade 4, participated in the National Table Tennis Championships in Geelong, placing 11th overall in her age group.  This is an amazing achievement at such a high level of competition – well done Ruby!

This week we have had Manaia in grade 6 competing in the National Little Athletics Championships in Adelaide.  Manaia placed 6th in the 800m and 7th in the 1500m.  This is another outstanding achievement at an elite level – congratulations also to Manaia for his achievements.

Principal Announcement

During the holiday break families were notified via XUNO of my intention to step down as Principal from the beginning of term 3.  I thank staff and families for the support I have received since making this decision and look forward to remaining at Gray Street as an Assistant Principal and spending more time back in the classroom.  School Council will be working through the process of appointing a new Principal to commence in term 3, with any future communication about this to come from School Council President, Anna Robertson. 

Have a great weekend!

Ben Kelson

Principal