From Marie

A Touch of Italy - Parent Morning Tea

A delicious morning tea of tiramisu and antipasto along with coffee was on offer on the morning of Italian Day.  Special thanks to Jon & Bao for providing the coffee, hot chocolate and tea; to Kate and Shaun who provided the marquee; and to Priscilla and her daughter for ensuring everything ran so smoothly.  What a great addition to our Italian Day festivities, we hope it becomes a regular event.

Hats off to Teachers

Friday 27 October was World Teacher's Day, and to celebrate we lifted our hats to the sky. Lucky those 250 hats had names in them!

State Track and Field Championships

On Wednesday, this week, Layla (Grade 6) and Iraa (Grade 4), attended the Track and Field State Championships at Lakeside Stadium, Albert Park.  Both Layla and Iraa represented not just Mullum Primary School, but also Eastern Metropolitan Region in their respective Multi-class events.   Layla came, 3rd in long jump, 6th in 100m sprint, 5th in Shot Put, receiving a medal for long jump.  Iraa ran 7th in the 100m sprint. These are amazing achievements from both girls and I am sure they would like to thank their parents for helping to make this happen!

Swimming 

Swimming this week has gone ahead with only one hiccough on Wednesday when a water pipe on a neighbouring property, burst!  Here are a few shots of our Foundation in the pool:

Poppy Appeal

Once again we are supporting the Poppy Appeal run every year in this week leading up to 11 November, Remembrance Day.  Starting tomorrow students, staff and parents can purchase poppies, pens and other memorabillia from the office - Cost $2 - $5.

60th Anniversary Events

• Trivia Night - 17 November. Planning for this event is in full swing and tables are filling fast for this night of entertainment and trivia.  Check out the designated page in this newsletter for more details and how to get yourself, and friends, a ticket.  
• Anniversary Bricks - The Bricks designed and purchased earlier this year have arrived and we are working with our landscape team to design the 60th Anniversary Garden.
• '1963 Kids Party' - Friday 17 November from 9:00-10:40 we will be holding a 60th Birthday Party with the students.  Students are encouraged to come dressed in bright, flowery clothing, in the style of "Flower Power".  Dancing to the popular tunes of 1963; games like hopscotch, hula hoops, knuckles and skipping and even a birthday cake, will be on offer.  

Little Anglers

The State government has provided all Grade 5 students with a fishing rod and tackle as part of their plan to encourage families get out into the great outdoors and start a new hobby, one that could last a life time.  These fishing rods will be sent home to all Grade 5 students tomorrow (Friday) afternoon. 

Class structures 

Forming classes and class groups is quite a jigsaw puzzle that needs solving, with every year being a little different. Deciding on the class structure each year is determined by a range of factors including enrolment numbers at all grade levels; gender of students; student dynamics and social structures; additional programs like Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden that is offered at Grade 3/4 and Bush Talk in Grade 5/6; teacher profile; funding from government; physical spaces, and the list continues.  This takes some time to sort through and we are currently working on these structures and placing staff for 2024.   Developing working classroom groups of students is also work that is being done at the moment.  Teachers will be asking their students to let them know which friends they would like to be with in 2024.  Students tend to look not much further than their current friendship group or current classmates to answer this question, and all students are placed with at least one of these friends.  Parents are also asked if they would like input into their child's placement through a confidential email to myself, stating what social and emotional reasons you have for a request.  As soon as this information is all compiled we will be letting families know of the structures for 2024 and which teachers are teaching where.

Transition across the school - "Stepping Up"

Starting next Friday, 10 November, at 2:00pm all current students are 'Stepping Up' to the next grade level and spend an hour in the classrooms getting to know each other, meeting new teachers, play some games and learn a bit about the next year level.  Our Kindergarten students who are transitioning to school will be coming on this day in three separate groups for smaller transition sessions with their parents.  The session next week will be run by the teachers who currently teach in this area of the school, however, future transition activities will be opportunities to meet the new classroom teachers for 2024. Subsequent transition sessions are:

• Friday 24 November at 2:00
• Friday  8 December at 2:00
• Tuesday 12 December at 9:00 (This is also the Grade 6 to Year 7 Transition Day)

Soirée

On Tuesday 28 November, at 5:30pm, our students learning keyboard, guitar and percussion will be presenting an evening of musical entertainment for their friends and family.  We encourage you to put this date in your diary and come down to celebrate all things musical.