Year 3/4 Camp

This week, our Year 3/4 children headed off to Lady Northcote Discovery Camp. The excitement began on Tuesday morning as we boarded the bus, eager for what lay ahead.

Upon arrival, we were welcomed with delicious muffins for morning tea and salad rolls for lunch. After settling into our cabins, we took time to explore the expansive campgrounds, dripping with Australian flora and fauna.

The activities kicked off right after lunch, offering a mix of fun, teamwork, and personal challenges. Canoeing was one of the more popular activities as the children learned to paddle and steer, played tiggy on the water, and even raced each other. Some couldn’t resist the temptation to splash their friends or take an impromptu swim when their canoe capsized!

Bike riding was another highlight. We learned to perform safety checks on our bikes and helmets, practiced changing gears, and took on games and challenges to hone our skills. The ride through the campgrounds was particularly special, as we kept an eye out for the two friendly camp dogs, who loved greeting visitors.

The low ropes course and initiatives tested our physical and problem-solving skills. Balancing on tightropes and navigating the tricky triangles course were the toughest tasks, but with teamwork and encouragement, we persisted. The initiatives activities, like balancing our group on a giant seesaw, taught us the value of cooperation and creative thinking. Camp staff guided us with timely tips when needed, helping us grow in confidence.

Of course, the giant swing stole the show! Soaring 18 metres into the air was incredible and pushed us out of our comfort zones. The squeals of delight and cries for extra turns echoed across the campgrounds.

For dinner, we enjoyed a hearty meal of chicken, roast potatoes, and vegetables, followed by chocolate mousse for dessert. Taking turns setting the tables and cleaning up afterwards gave everyone a chance to contribute to camp life.

The day ended with a viewing of The Lion King, a perfect way to wind down before heading to bed, ready for more adventures on day two.

Our Year 3/4 camp was an amazing experience filled with laughter, challenges, and memories. While we’re all thrilled to be back home, we might need the weekend to recover from all the fun!

Well done to our children for embracing every moment and a huge thank you to the staff at Lady Northcote Discovery Camp and the Holy Cross team for making our camp so special.

Garden Awards

Holy Cross was invited to attend the Victorian Schools Garden Awards at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Melbourne on Thursday. The awards opened with a smoking ceremony and Welcome to Country, reminding us of the deep connection between gardens, nature, and our well-being. Scientific research has shown that spending time outdoors can promote a sense of peace—something we experience firsthand in our school garden.

These awards encourage schools to create more green spaces in schools and many schools from around the state were invited. When the first round of awards was announced, Holy Cross wasn't called out. It was then that we started to think, maybe we won a larger award! Sure enough, it was then announced that we had won, 'Best Edible Garden' and a $1,000 voucher to spend on our garden. Ron and Launa sponsored the award and presented the award to Lachie and Josh and took the time to find our more about our Outdoor Ed space.

After the awards were announced we were invited to explore the gardens and participate in the activities set up for schools. We were able to get some ideas to bring back and share with Caitlyn and Abby. A big thank you to Caitlyn for putting the video together which won the award for us.

And now, Lachie also has a garden-inspired joke to share with you:

Why the the scarecrow win an award?

Because it was outstanding in its field!

Congratulations to everyone involved in this fantastic achievement!

5/6 Excursion to Sovereign Hill

On Thursday the 14th the year 5 and 6s went to Sovereign Hill for our inquiry unit about the gold rush. Before we left we split up into groups so we could all explore when we had free time, we walked around and went into stores that had an old fashion look to it.

And then it was off to gold pouring, all the groups met up and got shown how gold bars were made. First he melted the gold then he poured it out into a mould, after a few seconds the gold went back to a solid and then he put the hot gold bar in some cold water to cool it so then it was safe to touch. Once the gold was safe to touch he told us that this gold was 24 karat which means that it is 99.9% pure gold he said that this gold bar would be worth 400 thousand dollars.

After that we went off and had some free time to ourselves, we got to visit the lollie stores and explore all the different things around sovereign hill. There were old clothes shops, an old medicine shop, an old movie theatre and even an old hotel.

Then we went off to candle making, a lady showed us how to make candles nowadays and also how they made candles back in the 1850s. Back in the 1800s candles were essential to miners attempting to find gold because they had no electricity and they needed light in their holes to see what they were doing. An interesting fact about candles back in the 1800s is that they used them to keep track of time each candle would burn out after 10 hours so this was essential for miners to know when their shift ended. We also learned that candles weren't made out of bee wax like they are today, they were actually made out of animal fat or tallow that really stinks so much that they needed to have their shop 2 kilometres out of town because they stunk so much. After we did gold panning and it involved a lot of patients, most found nothing but some people found gold but only tiny specs of it.

Thanks to all of the teachers and parent helpers that came along.

By Cooper and Willow- Yr 6

State Athletics - By Isabella in Yr 6

On Wednesday the 6th of November I went to Lakeside Stadium in Albert Park for the school sport Victoria state track and field championships. It was an unpredictable day starting out very hot followed by a big thunderstorm that delayed all activity for half an hour. I competed in the 800m and the 1500m event versing kids aged 12/13 from all over Victoria. I placed 6th in both of them and although I was disappointed at first I now understand how big of an achievement it is being 6th in the whole of Victoria. Thank you to the school and my family and friends for supporting me as I progressed though each of the levels.

Year 4 Excursion To Holy Eucharist In St Albans

The year 4 students went on an excursion to Holy Eucharist Primary School at St Albans to make new friends and experience a different city cohort and to make new friends we played some really fun games with them and had a sausage sizzle, and in 2 weeks they will come to our school to see what a country school is like we will set up some activities to play and have another sausage sizzle over we had a great time.

We made a paper snake and also we played this game. It is when we run and if we make it back. Without the opposing team shooting a goal in the basketball ring Then we get a point but if the other team gets a goal while we are running, you stop and the last person gets a chance to get the people that are down

And with the most people sitting down losers and later I found out it is called

golden child. And this blooket is like Kahoot

Thank you to the teachers who came along and helped with the groups.

We all had a great time and made heaps of friends we look forward to seeing

them again

By Ed, Angelica and Levi - Yr 4

Remembrance Day

Last week, our school captains proudly represented Holy Cross at the local Remembrance Day service, laying a wreath at the cenotaph as a mark of respect. During the service, RSL President Darren Grevis-James delivered a moving commemorative address, honouring the bravery of those who gave their lives in service.

The 11th of November marks the anniversary of the Armistice that ended fighting in World War I. Red poppies were among the first flowers to bloom on the battlefields after the war, and have become a powerful emblem of remembrance for those who lost their lives.

It was nice to see so many of our children wearing poppies during our whole-school service, which was led by our Year 6 children, ensuring we paused to reflect and remember the sacrifices made for us.

Karaoke!

Some children in year 5 thought they could teach their teachers some dance moves, little did they know, Mr Wenczel and Kate had a few moves of their owthat they were able to show them!

Happy Birthday!