Primary

Head of Primary

Embracing Change with Hope and Trust

One of the few certainties in life is change. It arrives in many forms—some anticipated and welcomed, others unexpected and challenging. Yet, as the writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us, change is not random or meaningless: “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens…” (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Seasons shift, roles evolve, families grow, and communities transform. Change is a natural part of life.

At Bayside, we see change unfold in many ways—when new students join our community, when families leave, or when the time comes for a staff member’s season to end. At the conclusion of Term 2, we will be farewelling Mrs Louise Hogarty and her family as they relocate to Nhulunbuy in the Northern Territory. This change brings both sadness and joy—sadness in saying goodbye to a much-loved teacher and colleague, but joy and hope as the Hogarty family steps forward in obedience to God’s call and purpose over their lives.

As a school, we trust that God, in His faithfulness, will continue to provide. He wants Bayside to thrive, and we believe He will call another teacher to continue the fine work Louise has begun, bringing with them new skills, fresh perspective, and a heart for our students.

As individuals and as a community, we are constantly invited to respond to change: to embrace it or resist it, to trust or to doubt. Change can offer us a renewed perspective, fresh opportunities, and growth in areas we never imagined. It invites us to reflect, to listen more closely to God’s voice, and to realign ourselves with His purposes. Through change, we often gain wisdom, resilience, and a deeper reliance on Christ.

Of course, change can also stir up feelings of fear, uncertainty, or anxiety. But as Christians, we are not left to face these seasons alone or without hope. Our God is faithful, and He promises to equip us for whatever lies ahead. He uses times of change to widen our perspectives, grow our skill sets, shape our character, and ultimately to build His Kingdom through us.

In every season of change, we are called to be people of hope, anchored not in circumstances but in the unchanging love and goodness of our Heavenly Father. He is with us in every moment, guiding, sustaining, and working all things together for good.

May we continue to walk forward in trust, confident that God is preparing us for the next part of our journey, both as individuals and as a school community.

Blessings,

Mrs Danielle Lupi, Head of Primary

Bayside Way Certificates

Congratulations Mrs Bouwmeester

Congratulations to our Years 1/2 teacher, Mrs Sophie Bouwmeester, who was recently announced as the recipient of the Dean’s Award for Academic Excellence from Monash University. 

This prestigious award recognises the top graduating student for the Bachelor of Education (Honours) in Primary Education for 2024 — an extraordinary achievement that highlights her dedication, intellect, and passion for teaching. 

Mrs Bouwmeester will be formally honoured at the upcoming Monash Education Scholarships and Awards Ceremony, a celebration of the outstanding academic accomplishments of students and alumni across the university.

Welcoming Our Pre-Service Teachers

This term, we’re thrilled to welcome two passionate pre-service teachers to our Primary School community at Bayside.

Emma Hughes is joining Prep M for a five-week placement as she completes the final year of her Master of Teaching (Primary) at Eastern College. She’s part of the Christian Initial Teacher Education (CITE) program and is currently working with a Year 5 class at Flinders Christian Community College in Carrum Downs. Emma brings a wealth of life experience—she’s a qualified lawyer, a dedicated wife and mum to four children, and previously homeschooled her own family. Her journey into teaching has been driven by a deep love for learning and children. Emma also enjoys cooking (especially baking sourdough focaccia!) and relaxing with a good mystery novel.

In the 3/4LH classroom, we’re excited to have Sharon Lapierre. Originally from Mauritius, Sharon is fluent in French—reading, writing, and speaking the language with ease. She is married and the proud mother of two wonderful boys who bring joy and energy to her life. For the past four years, Sharon has been working at Hillcrest Christian College while studying for a Bachelor of Education through Eastern College. She is enrolled in a Christ-centred, innovative, and practical teacher training program. Outside the classroom, Sharon enjoys praying, cooking, decorating, travelling, and spending quality time with her family.

We’re so pleased to have both Emma and Sharon with us and can’t wait to see the impact they’ll make during their time at Bayside.

Donna Martin, Prep-Year 2 Coordinator

STEM News

Thank You for Supporting Our Book Fair and STEM Learning!

A big thank you to our wonderful school community for supporting the recent Primary Book Fair. Thanks to your generosity, we raised just over $700—an amazing achievement!

These funds will go directly toward expanding our Primary STEM resources, including new LEGO Spike Prime kits and Sphero Indi robots. Through hands-on challenges, students will strengthen their skills in critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving—skills that are essential for the future.

LEGO Spike Prime

The LEGO Spike Prime kits introduce students to engineering, coding, and robotics, allowing them to design and program their own creations. The Sphero Indi robots are perfect for our younger learners, helping them explore early coding and cause-and-effect through colour-coded commands.

We are also continuing to foster a love of reading across our school. Reading regularly supports academic achievement, fosters empathy, enhances language skills, and improves overall wellbeing.

Thank you again for your incredible support. It’s exciting to see students engaging so enthusiastically in their learning!

First lessons with the new Robotics

Our first lesson required some technical problem-solving and patience. Still, the students demonstrated patience and perseverance in working through the issues, and we were able to create our thank you message. 

Thanks to the previous class, our second class had a greater opportunity to explore. We worked through a basic introduction and examined a few key components and their functionality. Students were tasked with creating a vehicle that is programmed to move when it sees green and stop when it sees red. I was blown away at their ability to deal with failure by thinking critically and problem solving to find solutions to meet the task.

We had some fantastic outcomes. Thank you all for your support of the STEM program; it's great to see the high engagement levels in the classroom. 

We are excited to share a glimpse into our first lesson using the new Sphero Indi robots for STEM! These amazing little robots use a colour sensor to guide their movements. Each tile tells the robot to perform a specific action—turn left or right, move diagonally, speed up, slow down, stop, or even celebrate!

After some time getting familiar with them, the students were challenged to create a complete loop using no more than 7 tiles. With only 3 left and right turn tiles available, they had to get creative and incorporate diagonal tiles to successfully complete their loop. It was fantastic to see their problem-solving skills and creativity in action!

Mr David Sukh, STEM Teacher

Prep-2 RSPCA Incursion

Prep to Year 2 students were fortunate to have a very special visitor, Gus the French Bulldog, come to our school on Monday 24 March.  Emily and Christa, who work for the RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals), brought Gus to teach us how to look after pets. This includes loving them, feeding them, giving them clean water, bathing and brushing them, exercising them, taking them to the vet, picking up their waste, providing a safe and warm place to sleep, and ensuring they have identification in case they get lost.

We played a game where we had to choose the category that best fit our items. Some items that dogs need are blankets, toys, bowls, collars, food, medicine, water and poo bags. Then all students enjoyed patting Gus on the shoulder or chest before we said goodbye.

Written by all of the students in 1/2TC

Prep Indonesian Day – A Tropical Adventure in Prep!

Prep students enjoyed a magical Indonesian Day, when their classroom was transformed into a tropical rainforest. Thanks to Mr. Goshnick for lending stunning plants from the North Campus greenhouse, students were surrounded by greenery and friendly animal visitors and immersed in the sights, sounds, and stories of Indonesia.

They sang a lively greeting song using animal puppets, listened to a heartwarming tale about an orangutan and a tiger, and created their own finger puppets and wind chimes. The children were adventurous with their taste buds, trying rambutan fruit and delicious banana pancakes!

Indonesian Day showed how fun and engaging learning a new language can be. Through music, storytelling, creativity and food, our young learners took their first joyful steps into the Indonesian language and culture. Terima kasih (thank you) to all who helped make the day so special!

Ibu Newton (Mrs. Newton)

Congratulations Indi!

Over the Easter holidays, Indiana Davidson represented Bayside Christian College in the 2025 PETstock Equestrian Victoria Interschool State Championships for Showjumping at Boneo Park. The event was held over 5 days with 600 horses registered. Indi and her horse Buddy placed in all four events and won 2025 Reserve Champion for Intermediate 80cm. 

1st - Intermediate 80cm - One Round

5th - Intermediate 80cm - 2 Phase

1st - Intermediate 80cm - Jump Off

3rd - Sporting Horse Intermediate Year 7-9 - Barrel Racing

The Victorian Equestrian Interschool Series, or VEIS, is a series of dressage and show jumping competitions run by schools and organisations across the state, including a Grand Final event at Werribee (WPNEC) in June.

Stick Insects

Students in 1/2TC were delighted to discover that a stick insect nymph finally hatched out of the eggs we had collected from the adult stick insects last term!  Our class monitors have been keeping the eggs in a humid climate and praying that an egg would one day hatch. We could not believe our eyes when another nymph emerged from an egg two weeks later.

Even the breeders that Mrs Chester buys the stick insects from have been struggling to have any hatch, yet we have two!  Everyone is thinking of names for our new class pets, but one of them is very cheeky, so we think that would be a perfect name!

Mrs Tammie Chester, Primary Teacher

Primary Swimming Carnival

Primary Grandparents Day

Easter Service Reflection

I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to all the Primary students who took part in this year's Easter Service. It was a moving and deeply meaningful occasion, reflecting on the life, sacrifice, and resurrection of Jesus.

Through powerful dance, heartfelt prayers, thoughtful scripture readings, and the reverent sharing of Communion, the service beautifully captured the spirit of Easter. 

The worship band led with great sensitivity, helping to create an atmosphere of reflection and unity. A particularly touching moment was when each student placed an olive branch by the cross—an act of peace and remembrance that brought the whole community together. 

My sincere gratitude to everyone involved. It was a truly collaborative effort, and every contribution helped make the service memorable.

Mrs Caroyn Johnson, Primary Teacher

Meet our amazing new students!

It has been delightful to welcome many new students to Bayside in 2025! Please enjoy reading interviews with five of our incredible students - Eleanor, Luca, Rafael, Xavier, and Zac. 

Q: Tell us a little about yourself and the things you enjoy doing in your spare time.

Eleanor (3/4 JT): I’m turning nine in August. I enjoy playing hockey, netball, and games on my iPad.

Luca (3/4 LH): I enjoy drawing comics, such as Spiderman, and also gaming.

Rafael (3/4 SC): I like playing with my siblings. I’m in a soccer team and I play every Saturday.

Xavier (3/4 JP): I LOVE fishing and camping. I also enjoy playing tennis and basketball.

Zac (3/4 JT): I like doing BMX on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and I also play basketball.

Q: What things are you enjoying about Bayside?

Eleanor: There are lots of kind people! My friends are so funny. And I met my new cousin.

Luca: We have devotions, as it is a Christian school. The teachers are good and I have made lots of friends. 

Rafael: I’ve made lots of new friends.

Xavier: I am loving sport and making new friends. The teachers are pretty cool too. 

Zac: I like everything! I really enjoy playing four square with my friends.

Q: What are your favourite subjects? Can you tell us about an activity that you enjoyed doing in that subject?

Eleanor: Art, PE, Music, and STEM. In STEM I built a zipline using Lego.

Luca: Writing, Reading, Maths, and PE. I loved creating the Easter craft during Bible.

Rafael: STEM, Art, and Indonesian. In STEM, Mr Sukh challenged us to make the Indy Cars (robotic cars) go around in a square. We used coloured cards to make them stop and go. 

Xavier: I really enjoy PE. I love playing football and a range of other sports. 

Zac: PE and STEM. I loved using the robotics - we placed down tyres to create a pathway for the robot. 

Q: When you grow up, what do you want to do in this world to help it to be a wonderful place for everyone?

Eleanor: I want to be an artist and make everyone smile.

Luca: I would like to be a YouTuber, but Plan B is a game or food tester.

Rafael: I want to keep the world clean.

Xavier: I would like to educate people about sustainable fishing and caring for our waterways, such as keeping our waterways free from litter and rubbish. 

Zac: I would like to be an actor.

Miss Jennie Taylor, Primary Teacher

District Athletics - Field Events 

What a great morning we had for District Athletics! From 9am to 1pm, the sun was shining, the kids were smiling, and the atmosphere was full of energy and encouragement. Students gave their best in a variety of field events including Long Jump, Triple Jump, Discus, Shot Put, and High Jump.

It was fantastic to see students challenging themselves, celebrating PBs, and cheering each other on across every event. Whether they were soaring through the air in high jump, landing a powerful discus throw, or giving triple jump their best effort—everyone was having a blast.

Well done to all involved for showing great sportsmanship, teamwork, and determination. A big thank you to the staff and helpers who made the morning run smoothly!

Primary Cross Country

What a fantastic day for our Primary Cross Country! The weather was perfect, and our students gave it their all. It was inspiring to see them trying their best, learning how to pace themselves, and achieving plenty of personal bests. The atmosphere was full of determination, encouragement, and smiles at the finish line.

A special thank you to our wonderful Year 6 leaders who supported the Prep to Year 2 Cross Country after lunch. From acting as hares in the race to holding hands with the little ones as they ran, cheering them on, and gently encouraging them every step of the way—you led with heart and helped create such a positive experience for our younger students.

And of course, a huge thank you to all the staff, parents, and Learning Support team who helped run the day. These events simply wouldn’t be possible without your energy and support.

Mr Zacc Klan, Primary PE Teacher

Photo of the Day

In the 5/6MC classroom, we noticed a beautiful double rainbow and decided to quickly capture a photo to enjoy the moment!

1/2TC Charlotte's Web Party

You may have heard that students in 1/2TC enjoyed reading the classic story of 'Charlotte's Web' throughout Term One. We noticed the theme of friendship was threaded throughout the story as we learned how Charlotte very humbly saved Wilbur’s life. This reminded us of Jesus’ love, friendship, and sacrifice in saving each of us. 

We were very excited to have a Charlotte’s Web party and watch the movie.  We compared the book to the movie and noticed that they were very similar.  Mrs Chester prepared some delicious and nutritious spider and farm-themed healthy party food for each student to enjoy while we watched the movie, including colourful fruit and vegetables and freshly made popcorn.

Mrs Tammie Chester, Primary Teacher

1/2CJ Maths

Upcoming Dates