Surfside Primary School Newsletter

Out and about with Mr Walsh

Tribute to Erik Wirtz - Surfside PS School Council Vice President

Our school community was deeply saddened to hear that school council vice president Erik Wirtz, the father of one of our year 5 students Siena and husband of Rebecca, passed away recently. Erik passed away after a very short but aggressive battle with cancer. Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathy are with Siena, Rebecca, family and friends. 

We thank the many members of our school community who attended Erik's service on Wednesday in person or sent messages of support. This has been a great shock to our school community.

 

Erik has been an active member and contributor to our school community serving on school council for 6 years and in the most recent role as school council vice president. He has always been an amazing advocate and supporter of Surfside Primary School as a major sponsor of our Fresh Food Fair and many other aspects of school operations and he will be sorely missed. We thank Erik for his heartfelt support of our school community and we value all of his service over the past 6 years. We know that our school community will be there to support Siena and Rebecca through this challenging time and we thank the many members of our school community who have been on hand to support the family. We plan to communicate next week how we can continue to come together to also provide further support and comfort.

 

If your child has had an experience of bereavement, they may have questions or may share their thoughts or questions with you. Maintaining routine is important for children affected by grief and the school will make every effort to support students who are distressed. If you are concerned that you or your child are not coping well, please let us know. Grief is a personal experience and as such people will react differently – we ask that you be guided by you and your own child’s needs. If your child is distressed, we would encourage you to listen to them and provide comfort and reassurance where possible.  Our school mental health and wellbeing team is available for our staff, students and families. If you feel your child would benefit from a confidential chat, please contact our team directly. Additional support is available through:  

 Additionally, Hope Bereavement Care is a free and confidential service that supports families, friends and schools with grief. They can be contacted on 4215 3358.

Peter Walsh - Principal 

Eloise Cann - School Council President

School Saving Bonus

Schools have started receiving information regarding the School Saving Bonus. Please check the page or compass post that provides more information regarding the $400 School Saving Bonus and what families need to do. There will also be an updated parent details sheet that will come home with the eldest child and these will need to be completed and returned to assist the process. We will keep our school community updated as we receive more information. 

The Art Show is coming - 2 weeks to go...

The art show is just less than 2 weeks away and the students have been placing the finishing touches and the halls and rooms are starting to take the shape of a medieval castle. Student art will be on display across the year levels and there will be performances from our music and drama program. Add in a range of activities such as medieval games, face painting and a sausage sizzle and food from the Surfside Snack Shack and it is bound to be a great night. Please check out our Art Show page and secure your tickets via compass - $10 per family!

Trivia Night Thank You

The annual trivia night was a fun filled night for all involved and we were thrilled to have 230 people attend over 2 nights. It was great to see each table have a theme, participate in a number of challenges and activities and answer some questions along the way. We hope all involved had a great night and we thank all of those who supported the nights. A big thank you to Vicki, Ebony, Stacey, Kerry and the leadership team who volunteered their time to assist over both evenings.

Book Week Celebrations

Book Week culminated in our Book Week parade and whole school activities on Friday. The students enjoyed dressing up and getting involved in the Book Week spirit of - Reading is Magic. There were so many highlights throughout the morning and the day kept getting better with various cross age activities and spending some time with illustrator Scott Edgar. A big thank you to Ms Griffiths and her crew for their organisation.

Coding Club

A group of our year 5 students have been participating in a weekly coding club challenge. What is coding you might ask???? Coding creates a set of instructions for computers to follow. These instructions determine what actions a computer can and cannot take. Coding allows programmers to build programs, such as websites and apps. Computer programmers can also tell computers how to process data in better, faster ways. We might have the next Steve Jobs or Bill Gates amongst this group.

District Athletics & Basketball

We had a massive crew head out to Goldsworthy Athletics Centre last Monday to compete in the School Sport Victoria District Athletics Carnival competing against other schools in the Bunjil District. There were many outstanding performances across the track and field events and we will see a number of our students qualify for the Division event in a few weeks.

A collection of our students particpated in the District Basketball Championships and a big congratulations to our teams who performed at a very high level with our Boys team qualifying for the next round. A big thank you to the teaching staff and our parent helpers for assisting the teams throughout the day.

Curriculum Day Overview

Last Wednesday the Surfside staff participated in a whole school Curriculum Day. The focus of the day was implementing a Behaviour Curriculum to support the consistent predictable routines that are evident in each and every classroom. This is around creating shared expectations in and out of the classrooms and supporting positive experiences for all students each and every day. More information can be found on our Mental Health & Wellbeing page in last week and this weeks newsletter. A big thank you for the leadership team in preparing and presenting throughout the day and a big thank you to all of our staff for participating. We look forward to continuing to implement these strategies in and out of the classroom in 2024 and beyond.

Surfside Snack Shack Update 

A big thank you to the Surfside Snack Shack who have provided an opportunity for some mid week snacks while supporting community and world issues through a sustainable approach. Keep an eye out each week via compass and the school Facebook page for the treat being offered for that week. We have been able to celebrate some special events and connect with things happening around the school. A big thank you to Clancey, Gill and the Surfside Snack Shack for their great work and initiative.

All food items are in accordance with our Anaphylaxis Policy, being 

nut free and sesame free. Dairy free options will also be available when possible.

School Council - September Meeting 

Our next school council meeting will take place on Tuesday 15th August at 5:30pm with Finance meeting taking place at 5.00pm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enrolment Time at Surfside

Enrolments have now opened for new students and families who will be joining the Surfside family in 2025. If you have a sibling of a current student at Surfside they will also need to complete this enrolment process. We have conducted our tours for prospective families and are starting to collect a number of enrolments ready for 2025. Please check out the enrolling your child in Primary School tab for more information in this newsletter.

School Council - June Meeting 

Our next school council meeting will take place on Tuesday 18th June at 5:30pm with Finance meeting taking place at 5.00pm.