Principal's Report

Harmony Day Celebrations

Last Friday the school was awash with colour, excitement and a range of lunchtime activities for the students to celebrate Harmony Day. The theme for Harmony Day this year was “Harmony – we all have a role to play!” This theme is one that we embrace and encourage throughout the school; you may have noticed the posters about the school that promote the importance of acts of kindness – a quality that we all have the ability to show.

The activities for our Harmony Day celebrations occurred at lunchtime. This wonderful work was led by our French teacher, Laurence Barre, with the excellent support of our Year 6 students. Some of the activities that students could choose from included a scavenger hunt, a disco in the performing arts room, making friendship bracelets, parachute games, an obstacle course and basketball games. There was a lovely atmosphere across the schoolyard, with students of all ages coming together and supporting each other with these games and activities.

Thank you and congratulations to Laurence and Year 6 for organising such a great day. Thank you too to everyone who donated on the day. Our community raised over $530 for Foodbank Victoria.

Year 6 – Sports, Debates & Camp

It certainly is a busy time in the calendar for Year 6. In the last week they have participated in the Summer sports gala day, run the activities for Harmony Day, engaged in a debating afternoon, and this week they are on their five-day camp to Camp Jungai.

Last Thursday, Year 6 families were invited to attend our annual Year 6 Debating Afternoon. These debates are the culmination of learning about debating styles, language and techniques, and students putting their research into action. The questions that the students debated were:

• Is social media more harmful than beneficial for society?
• Is competition necessary for success?
• Should the school week be four days?

It takes a lot of courage for the students to speak in this formal environment in front of a large audience. Not only did they need to prepare strong arguments to persuade the audience, but they also had to think on their feet when rebutting points made by the other team. Well done Year 6 on speaking so confidently, clearly and passionately.

Our final note for Year 6 is to wish them an unforgettable camp experience this week. The teachers’ feedback to date has been positive, and I’m looking forward to visiting on Thursday to see how everything is going.

Election Day Sausage Sizzle & Cake Stall

At last night’s school council meeting, we discussed the importance of holding a sausage sizzle on election day, Saturday 3rd May. This is only two weeks after term two starts, which will not give much time to organise the event.

To enable us to run the sausage sizzle, we will need the support of our wonderful community to run the barbecue, bake the cakes, and get involved in all the other elements of this event. Details will be communicated nearer the time – please make a note in your diaries as every hour that a volunteer helps, makes a difference.

ResourceSmart Accreditation

When you enter the main office at the LSC, you will notice our ResourceSmart accreditation sign, which displays two-star accreditation – Core Module; Waste Module. This is a significant achievement, which is the result of many hours of work, led by our sustainability officer, Amelia Trompf. Sustainability is a theme that I am often asked about when I conduct school tours; and it is easy to showcase all of the wonderful work that we do to make FPS as environmentally sustainable as possible. Thank you to everyone for your contributions to this important work.

Read more about this work in the Sustainability section of this newsletter.

Fundraising – Foundation Social Night

$800 was raised from the Foundation Social Night, which was held back in February. These funds have been allocated to the purchase of  iPads for the French and Science specialist programs.

School Tours for Prospective Families

School tours for families of children starting school in 2026 will be held throughout May and June. The schedule of tours can be viewed here.

Families will be able to book a place on a tour from Friday 4 April.

School Council 2025 Members

Last night, our 2025 school council met for the first time. I am always grateful to the councillors who volunteer their time to take on this active role in our school community.

Parent Representatives

• Hayden Gyles – School Council President
• Emma McDonald – School Council Vice-President
• Huon Morton – School Council Treasurer
• Jock Hutton
• Phuong Phan
• Regan Richards
• Patricia Stanton
• Sally Thorpe

Department of Education Representatives

• Paul Wallace – Executive Officer
• Grace Clark
• Michele Fraser
• Nicole Rettke

Thank You

I would like to take a moment to thank our outgoing school council president, Regan Richards, for her leadership of school council during the last two years. During Regan’s time as school council president, she has been a great source of advice and support when discussing a range of governance matters. Regan will continue on school council as a parent representative, with Hayden Gyles as our new school council president.

Happy Holidays & End of Term Assembly 

I am grateful for everyone’s efforts in making term one so productive. Every term is busy with its own challenges and opportunities. I see and feel the ongoing efforts and improvements that are taking place everyday, to make FPS the best place it can be.

All families are invited to attend our end of term assembly on Friday at 9am at the Fig Tree Courtyard. A reminder that school ends early on this day, with a 2pm dismissal.

Wishing everyone an enjoyable two-week break.

~ Paul Wallace, Principal